[raka1o]

Originally Posted by BurningHeart

Well, i just got back after the Xmas drive. Not so much of blast. May be the stretch after Salem is possibly much better and after Madurai is a lot better. But a "blast" is possibly when one has not had much in way of choices!

Drive more. Drive to Goa. Drive to Hyderabad. You will have bigger blasts in the new year. Have fun!

I agree, went to my native (virudhunagar - after madurai) from Bangalore, traffic is high till krishnagiri may be because of chennai route and also road repair going on, the road after salem is too good and most of the time we can view 1-2km stretch so good to zoom....the only concern now a days is, more than dogs, local people are unpredictable
and toll fee is increasing every year I think 6 years back I paid only Rs.280 one way for toll and now its Rs.450.....number of vehicle increases than toll suppose to be less or they should plan well in advance on expansion and alternate depending on number of vehicles.....

[BurningHeart]

Originally Posted by raka1o

and toll fee is increasing every year I think 6 years back I paid only Rs.280 one way for toll and now its Rs.450.....number of vehicle increases than toll suppose to be less .....

Yes, that is a good point. I never compared, but I should have. I think I paid Rs. 700+ oneway this time, which I think 4 years ago was about Rs. 400. But the vehicle volume (and hence queues seem to have multipled). And between Madurai and Bangalore, there are too many toll booths for some reason. Sometimes, you wonder if they all need to be there.

[shramik]

Originally Posted by raka1o

I agree, went to my native (virudhunagar - after madurai) from Bangalore, traffic is high till krishnagiri may be because of chennai route and also road repair going on, the road after salem is too good and most of the time we can view 1-2km stretch so good to zoom....the only concern now a days is, more than dogs, local people are unpredictable
and toll fee is increasing every year I think 6 years back I paid only Rs.280 one way for toll and now its Rs.450.....number of vehicle increases than toll suppose to be less or they should plan well in advance on expansion and alternate depending on number of vehicles.....

Yes, dogs are a huge menace ! I hit a dog between Dharampuri & Krishnagiri in my Linea at 130 Kms+…..front left Bumper, head light, fog light ripped off…Rs 25,000 !! And the dog apparently escaped with bruises !!!!!!

[Funda]

Originally Posted by RoadTiger

Old Mumbai-Pune road has character (the expressway lacks it), great views, reasonably good quality of roads and some reaaaly nice curves ...

Btw, another awesome curvy road is the "36 hairpin road" from Bandipur forest exit upto Ooty ... there is a specific name to this place/ road that I forget ... but man, if you love using your steering wheel and driving in general, the road is very nice. Overall steep incline, 36 truly hair-pin bends, would be typically in 2nd gear ... with a view to distract !

Trivia - I recall a board on this road that talks about the number of folks who said goodbye to the world, trying to unsuccessfully navigate the ghats (i guess most must have been on the way down the ghats, unable to control)

I know a fair number of folks on t-bhp have done this road - Any experiences to share?

This is the old state highway that goes from Masinagudi to Ooty. There is a waterfall midway. It connects Bison valley with Ooty. The road is nice. After the Coimbatore -Mysore NH this road is not that much in use. The quality of the road is not great but wont call it bad either. You find idiots on this road who dont give way to uphill traffic. I found one each time I drove on this road.

[Sandman689]

Originally Posted by ac 427

Attachment 471188
And yes these are in India.

Wow. It's really hard to believe these beautiful roads are in India.
Thank you so much for sharing. Next time when I go to Sikkim, I'll make sure i don't miss this place.

[ampere]

In fact the advent of 4-lane roads is so high, that any road with trees lined on both sides seem heaven nowadays! A quaint country drive on a weekend is the only way to rejuvenate one's senses after a hectic work week.I do understand I diverting from the topic. But some how felt quite strong about the beauty country roads. Hence wanted to bring it up here.

[g.prabhudesai]

Bombay-Goa Highway wins by miles. The hills, the straights. The single carriage-way. The greens. I've driven on the road say twenty-five/ thirty times (?). Was never once bored.

The Bombay Pune Expressway was dreary on the second drive itself. No pleasure. Just a big road. And I prefer tar roads over cemented ones personally.

Regards,
G P

[Funda]

Has anyone driven on the Himalayan Expressway to Shimla? I saw some pictures posted by a friend from Shimla and I think it would be a dream to drive on a 6 lane express way in the himalayas. Please share your experiences if you have been on the road and burnt some oil.

[sinharishi]

Originally Posted by Funda

Has anyone driven on the Himalayan Expressway to Shimla? I saw some pictures posted by a friend from Shimla and I think it would be a dream to drive on a 6 lane express way in the himalayas. Please share your experiences if you have been on the road and burnt some oil.

Sharing some pics from my trips to HP in 2012 and 2013. It is a 4 lane expressway. It connects zirakpur and Parwanoo, ends at timber trail bypassing congested Kalka and Pinjore towns.

[Funda]

Originally Posted by sinharishi

Sharing some pics from my trips to HP in 2012 and 2013. It is a 4 lane expressway. It connects zirakpur and Parwanoo, ends at timber trail bypassing congested Kalka and Pinjore towns.

Nice Pictures buddy. Thanks for sharing them. Once the road is complete I am sure it would add to the list of dream drives for all petrolheads.

[CANPUSH]

Last week I had one of the best experiences traveling to Hubli.

Belgaum-Hubli is a wonderful experience. Perhaps the best on Indian roads I have used till day. Better than Mumbai-Pune or Vadodara-Ahmedabad expressways. It was late evening. When i crossed Belgaum it was almost 7 pm. I was bit scared with my experience on Satara Pune section the previous week where it was like driving in dark space without any clues.

But this was great surprise. It is recently six laned road and they have put reflectors on the lane markings too. For lanes they are white and for edge of road they are red. In the night they glow in your head lights to clearly show you the lanes. Also, being little protruded, it discourages frequent lane changing even during the day time.

I think all roads in India should be made to that standard as basic necessary requirement. There is no great scenery around this road but the quality of road helps you travel at good speed. Because of these reflectors and marking you feel safe and assured even during dark.

[ameyawaghmare]

Originally Posted by CANPUSH

Last week I had one of the best experiences traveling to Hubli.

Belgaum-Hubli is a wonderful experience. Perhaps the best on Indian roads I have used till day. Better than Mumbai-Pune or Vadodara-Ahmedabad expressways. It was late evening. When i crossed Belgaum it was almost 7 pm. I was bit scared with my experience on Satara Pune section the previous week where it was like driving in dark space without any clues.

But this was great surprise. It is recently six laned road and they have put reflectors on the lane markings too. For lanes they are white and for edge of road they are red. In the night they glow in your head lights to clearly show you the lanes. Also, being little protruded, it discourages frequent lane changing even during the day time.

I think all roads in India should be made to that standard as basic necessary requirement. There is no great scenery around this road but the quality of road helps you travel at good speed. Because of these reflectors and marking you feel safe and assured even during dark.

Hi, thanks for the info. I think National Highway 4 in general is one of the best roads in India for sure, at least the Pune - Bangalore stretch. Thanks to this, Pune - bangalore overnight journey is a reality and I have experienced reaching in private buses in sharp 12.5 hours with all breaks, time spent inside city, etc. Now, from Pune, popular places in south India do not seem to be that far thanks to the good road.

[ameyawaghmare]

I suppose a common favorite on best road in India in this thread is the Mumbai - Pune Expressway. Truly, an engineering marvel and brought this entire concept of expressway, barrier all along, toll collection, emergency helpline to India.

In my view, the best roads in India would have 2 clear choices.
i) Delhi - Ambala - Jalandhar GT Road: Those of you who have travelled along this route must have clearly enjoyed the width of road (bare minimum of 6 lanes and gets wider at stretches), which often without lane markings looks like a playground/battlefield! And to add to it, there are those wonderful dhabas and food joints all along. Best part, the signboards are clear and educate drivers on overtaking from right side only. Plus, there is speed tracking at points and I have often seen vehicles held near Panipat for overspeeding which is a must. A speed limit of 90 in my view is very good and 10% deviation is okay even for authorities. The diversions present currently still don't reduce speed and don't make you wait for long. Hope, the remaining work gets completed quickly and I am sure many more would be writing about this as India's best road. And yes, how did I forget to mention, all tarmac throughout and none of those cement concrete stretches at all!

ii) Mumbai - Pune Expressway: For all reasons mentioned above i)! This route has made things so easy for people frequenting along this route and those passing by. We never have to worry about potholes/puddles or anything on this. Patrol vehicle ensures security and any vehicles meeting an unfortunate event all taken care of very quickly. Thus, no long queues or reduced lanes because one lane has been occupied by an accident-caused vehicle or breakdown trucks. Marvellous!

[raka1o]

Originally Posted by shramik

Yes, dogs are a huge menace ! I hit a dog between Dharampuri & Krishnagiri in my Linea at 130 Kms+…..front left Bumper, head light, fog light ripped off…Rs 25,000 !! And the dog apparently escaped with bruises !!!!!!

Hi Shramik - oh that's bad. It happened to me this time, dog came of a sudden and hit at speed of 100kms, bumper is broker and cover is top of tyre is worn out. better to slow down near road side restaurant...I realized after this happened.

[gomzi]

Originally Posted by CANPUSH

Last week I had one of the best experiences traveling to Hubli.

Belgaum-Hubli is a wonderful experience. Perhaps the best on Indian roads I have used till day. Better than Mumbai-Pune or Vadodara-Ahmedabad expressways. It was late evening. When i crossed Belgaum it was almost 7 pm. I was bit scared with my experience on Satara Pune section the previous week where it was like driving in dark space without any clues.

But this was great surprise. It is recently six laned road and they have put reflectors on the lane markings too. For lanes they are white and for edge of road they are red. In the night they glow in your head lights to clearly show you the lanes. Also, being little protruded, it discourages frequent lane changing even during the day time.

I think all roads in India should be made to that standard as basic necessary requirement. There is no great scenery around this road but the quality of road helps you travel at good speed. Because of these reflectors and marking you feel safe and assured even during dark.

The roads in Karnataka on NH4 are a dream to drive on - infact I would say the NH4 experience after Kolhapur till Hubli is simply superb. I went through this route twice last year and the expansion work was going on. After your update, I can't wait till I go that route again.

I personally prefer twisty roads to the expressway style roads. The Mumbai-Pune expressway got me really excited the first couple of time driving on it, but now its a humdrum exercise. The engineering on the expressway is marvelous, but the expressway style of highway while great for balancing safety and speed is a bit unexciting for driving on except for a couple of small stretches which finish too soon.

The NH 17 which other members have spoken about is also up on my favorites list.

An exciting stretch of road I encounter on my annual travel from Mumbai to Shirali, karnataka is the NH63 from Kalghatgi (near Hubli) to Ankola on the coast where it joins the NH17.

The road is a single lane each side, winding through the Kalghatgi ghats, through the forest interspersed with few small villages. The road is mostly smooth tarmac and usually by the time I reach this stretch around 6pm-7pm its quite empty. I normally wind down the windows, turn off the music and turn on the paddle shifters on this stretch and enjoy engine music. Its one of the highlights of these trips of mine covering ~800 kms from Thane to Shirali.

If you're based in mumbai good driving roads are only a couple of hours away. One is in lonavla on the road upto tiger point and beyond. Another is the NH 3 from Mumbai to Nasik. It passes through Igatpuri hill station and a good place to have lunch and head back home after a leisurely Sunday morning drive.

Another road which is slightly off the usual lists is the road from Kalyan to Malshej Ghat. Normally lot of people approach Malshej ghat via NH3 route. This road from Kalyan till there is again a single lane each side, winding through the landscape and the road surface is also mostly good - although I haven't been there after July this year, so I do not know the current condition. The traffic is also relatively less although you need to watch out for the overloaded Tempo travelers which hurtle by at breakneck speed.