Bangalore-Chennai-Bangalore: Many alternate routes
Folks. Here are my onward journey details. I went via Attibele, Hosur Inner Ring Road, Rayakottai, Krishnagiri, Bargur, Tirupattur, Alangayam, Vellore, Kanchipuram, Walajahbad, Vandalur, Tambaram to Nanganallur.
I left my home at Bommanahalli at 5:30 AM. The Attibele-TVS road is in a patched up condition. No major potholes on this stretch. Infact the road after TVS factory is very good indeed.
I went via Hosur by pass road, Hosur Railway station and then took a turn towards the Inner Ring Road to join the Hosur Rayakottai road
HOSUR - RAYAKOTTAI ROAD
This stretch is butter smooth in most of the sections. At some places i did notice the top layer of tar being eroded but as such no major potholes. I did notice some private volvo buses plying on this road to Bangalore.
RAYAKOTTAI - KRISHNAGIRI ROAD
From Rayakottai, I took the road that leads to Krishnagiri. Till you reach a village called POOVATHI, the roads are narrow and winding as it is a ghat section there. From the village onwards, you get broad 2 lane roads to drive and the roads are in impecccable condition. of course one has to watch out for speed breakers.
I reached Krishnagiri by 7:45 AM. From here i proceeded towards Bargur via the NH. The exit road towards Bargur is clearly shown on the display board on the NH.
BARGUR ROAD
The road leading to Bargur is a treat to drive with lots of trees on the road side.
BARGUR - TIRUPATTUR ROAD
This stretch is even better than the road leading to Bargur. Even though i travelled on a week day, traffic was less.
TIRUPATTUR - ALANGAYAM ROAD
After reaching Tirupattur, I stopped to inquire from the locals the road leading to Vellore via Alangayam. Of course we have one more option of going via Jolarpet and Vaniyambadi to Vellore. In the latter, we have to shell out toll at Pallikonda whereas in the former, we get to avoid paying toll at both Vaniyambadi and Pallikonda.
This is the first time i travelled on the Alangayam road and surprisingly the road was good. Comparatively traffic was slightly high as there were number of villages enroute coupled with speed breakers. At some sections the tar had come off but no potholes as such.
It was a treat to drive on this stretch as well. In fact I passed through forest sections enroute to Alangayam. In these stretches, it was a single lane road. At one point of time, i was all alone on this road.
Once you reach Alangayam, if you take a right turn it leads to Kavalur wherein we have the observatory of Indian Institute of Astrophysics.
ALANGAYAM - VELLORE ROAD
Once again it was a bliss to drive on this road. As you proceed on this stretch, you will see a sign boards showing SRIPURAM further ahead and ABDULLAHPURAM towards the right.
We have to take a right turn to proceed towards Abdullahpuram. From here i joined the NH. I reached vellore by 9:45 AM. Distance wise travelling on the Alangayam road is more compared to the NH route. Also we have the forest section till Alangayam that slows you down.
IMO driving on the SH's of TN was far far better than travelling on the NH. The stretch on the NH where NH4 joins the Hosur road till Kanchipuram was a pain to drive with innumerable potholes. It tests your driving skills in terms of how to drive by avoiding the potholes. The worst part is after driving on this pathetic road we have to pay toll at Chennasamudiram.
KANCHIPURAM - WALAJAHBAD ROAD
I reached Kanchipuram by 11 AM. The traffic was on the higher side inside the temple town. It took me some time to exit Kanchipuram. Walajahbad is about 15 kms from Kanchipuram.
From here the road leading to Walajahbad was too good.
WALAJAHBAD - VANDALUR ROAD
This is a 4 lane SH.
This can be considered as an alternative to Sriperumbudur-Mannimangalam route. Work is going on in full swing on this SH. About 90% of the stretch is a 4 lane road.
From Vandalur, I reached Tambaram and proceeded towards Nanganallur via GST. I reached home in Nanganallur at 12:30 PM. The odometer diaplayed 371 kms and i took exactly 7 hrs including a 1 min break for coffee to cover this distance.
RETURN JOURNEY
We intended to visit Chettipunyam near Singaperumal koil where we have the famous Lord Hayagreevar temple. This is the same idol as you find in Thiruvahindrapuram near Cuddalore.
After visiting the shrine, i proceeded along GST towards Paranur toll plaza. After paying toll, i went a bit further on the GST and took a turn towards Kanchipuram.
SH 58 towards Walajahbad from Paranur is an average stretch with quite a number of potholes. Since i was travelling in the night, i was not able to take any snaps.
Once i reached Walajahbad, it was the usual road to Kanchipuram. I was caught in a traffic jam at Kanchipuram owing to rain. It took me a while before i could exit the temple town.
From here i took the NH route to reach Bangalore.
Overall it was a satisfying driving experience for me as i experimented with many alternative routes.