[narayans80]

In India, the truck drivers always prefer shorter, toll-free roads.

It is more of the toll free factor thats making truckers prefer the Chittoor route against the Vellore one. Back in my dad's driving days (15 yrs back) there werent much trucks that used the Chittoor route, the lack of traffic was the USP for us choosing the Chittoor route.

And it is the traffic that favoured the Vellore route to become a part of GQ (4-laned) compared to the Chittoor one.

Distance wise i dont there is much difference (10-20 kms maybe) if you are trying to reach a central point (say Majestic) from a given point in Madras.

[SuperSlick]

@luxative - The trip got postponed and I would be travelling this weekend, start early morning on Saturday and return back by Sunday evening. Will try to get some snaps of OMR, if possible.

[SuperSlick]

Hi folks, I did the BLR trip this weekend and took the GQ to enter the city and OMR while returning back. I'll move to the update on OMR right away as promised, since I believe most of us know the route and conditions via the GQ and are only wanting to know more about OMR!

Starting point was Kensington Road, Ulsoor 10:15 am. Just took a left turn and I was on OMR right away. Driving through straight for some distance and I had reached the outskirts of the city and headed towards Kolar now. On the way you will see a sign board stating 'Toll road starts here' and this is the point from where the roads are 4-laned. Initial pics taken were from the cam which just died and so I had to take snaps with my phone, as always. All the pics are taken by my brother while I did the driving.











You would come across a couple of Toll Plazas that are still under construction and not functioning yet. The first toll plaza is some 40-50 kms before Kolar. There is still some finishing work to be done in some places and there will be 'Men At Work' sign boards, tapes and cones to alert you.



















On a couple of places before reaching Kolar the traffic on the opposite side was diverted and vehicles would come head-on which you need to watch out for. The 4-laned road ends abruptly at around Mulbagal and there is a speed breaker which is not marked and you have to be alert enough to notice it and brake.








Hilly Section after Palamner is still in good shape. I just loved driving through this section. The roads were awesome to drive, did some very spirited driving here. Taking racing lines most of the time, attacking corner after corner! It was pure bliss!

The roads all the way until you join back GQ after Ranipet are good and the truck/bus traffic eases once you are out of AP. I did cross a couple of check posts, but was not stopped anywhere. We reached home by 4:15 pm which included a couple of breaks.











Verdict: OMR is very much doeable and as it has been mentioned there was truck/bus traffic on this route after entering AP. But if you are an experienced driver it should not be a problem driving through this single-laned highway. It does require quite a lot of overtaking which needs to be done skillfully.

Sorry for the lengthy post. Just wanted to add my 2 cents!

Originally Posted by SuperSlick

But if you are an experienced driver it should not be a problem driving through this single-laned highway.

Thanks a lot, for photographic update of OMR, SuperSlick. I shall definitely try OMR for my next Chennai visit. BTW, it is a single carriageway with two lanes.

[SuperSlick]

@J.Ravi, thanks for correcting. Guess, I just got carried away with the euphoria of posting my first mini travelogue :P

[narayans80]

Excellent update SuperSlick !! Except for the speed breaker near Mulbagal you mentioend the OMR seems to be in great shape. Your 4-laning update for Bangalore-Mulbagal is almost similar to the Trichy-Dindigul stretch i did 3 weeks back. Couple of questions though

How long did KR Puram-Mulbagal and Mulbagal-Ranipet take you ?
Do you have to get into Ranipet town to get onto Chittoor route ?

[SuperSlick]

Thanks narayans80! There were a few more speed breakers after Palamner near about the hilly section and some on the way towards Ranipet. Don't exactly recall the place where they were though. But you can watch out for the vehicle in front of you to notice the speed breakers in advance. It's easy to maintain speeds greater than 80 Kmph on the 4-laned roads.

On the time taken from KR Puram to Mulbagal it would be roughly around 1-1.5 hrs and Mulbagal to Ranipet took roughly 3 hrs. You would bypass Chitoor to enter Ranipet. Just when you are nearing Chitoor you would approach a Y-junction. There are no markings or sign boards here, but you have to take the road going right which would take you to Ranipet.

Taking the left would take you into Chitoor town.

[narayans80]

Thank you SuperSlick, I was asking about Ranipet bypass. IIRC the Y junction for Chittoor bypass (on either side) you mentioned existed back then (pre-GQ days) too (was it 72 km to Tirupati on the sign board at the Y junction, coming from Bangalore ?).

[SuperSlick]

Well, I did not notice the distance to Tirupathi, but by checking the google maps the distance does show around 72 kms.

And yes, you would again bypass Ranipet town and not have to enter it.

[binand]

Just got in to Bangalore from Chennai this morning - about six hours door to door with a breakfast break at Deepam and several other breaks for a car-sick niece. As known, nothing really worth reporting on the GQ route except that even for a Sunday, it is painfully obvious that Chennai-Vellore and Krishnagiri-Bangalore can both use a couple of additional lanes each. And that a truck carrying sand appeared to have dumped its cargo on the road between Chennasamudram and Pallikonda, creating a mess and a bottleneck.

I will be returning to Chennai in a couple of days (perhaps Wednesday or Thursday) alone and am thinking of going via NH4. SuperSlick's photos are really appealing :-) Few questions, though:

1. I figure about 320 km distance, which is about 40 km less than the GQ route - correct? Which means it should be doable in the same time as the GQ route?

2. The roads are good, so my car (a low ground clearance Civic) will not have a problem?

3. Are there COCO fuel outlets on the route? Food options?

Thanks.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by binand

1. I figure about 320 km distance, which is about 40 km less than the GQ route - correct? Which means it should be doable in the same time as the GQ route?

2. The roads are good, so my car (a low ground clearance Civic) will not have a problem?

1) Not really. Majority of that stretch is a 2-lane road so you cannot keep up speed. The stretch thru' AP is another mess so you'll slow down considerably.

2) The road is not as smooth as the GQ. So, although not a problem for GC, you will not travel as fast as on the GQ.

[ampere]

The one main (and I guess the only) advantage is entry and exit to Bangalore (as every one says) if one stays on the OMR side in Bangalore.
Apart from that for all practical purposes GQ is better.

Originally Posted by binand

And that a truck carrying sand appeared to have dumped its cargo on the road between Chennasamudram and Pallikonda, creating a mess and a bottleneck.

This is a common feature on Vellore-Chennai route, especially during the mornings, the sand-laden trucks are seen spilling their cargo all along the highway. If another vehicle follows these monsters, minute sand-hits and scratches on windshields are available in plenty! Even if safe distance is maintained, sand showers are guaranteed.

Originally Posted by binand

Are there COCO fuel outlets on the route? Food options?

KAMAT UPACHAR is located before Kolar on NH-4, 60 km from Bangalore towards Chennai attached to IOC Jubilee Retail Outlet at 49th km, NH-4, Byrasandra Village, Narasapura, Kolar District.

[SuperSlick]

Just want to add to anyone who would like to take NH-4 as opposed to the GQ. NH-4 is short by say 20-30 kms by distance and the road surface may not necessarily match the GQ, but it does not mean you cannot drive at speeds. You can drive flat out (your comfortable driving speed) until Mulbagal, thanks to the almost completed 4-laning. Also, in many sections of the roads after entering AP, I was doing close to 100 kmph in my Alto (not rash driving).

At decent speeds, one can average about 50 to 55 kmph and reach Chennai in 6 hrs including a good 30 minute break on NH-4.

[ranjitp1]

Any inputs on how much the toll totals to between Bangalore & Chennai via the GQ?Also what are the eating options between Krishnagiri & Chennai?