[NPV]

Originally Posted by SR-71

People going to Coimbatore might benefit from the following alternatives

• Chengapalli - Tirupur - Palladam - Coimbatore

Why not Perundurai-Kangeyam-Palladam-Coimbatore instead of Chengapalli - Tirupur - Palladam - Coimbatore ?

[kala]

Originally Posted by SR-71

People going to Coimbatore might benefit from the following alternatives

• Chengapalli - Tirupur - Palladam - Coimbatore
• Chengapalli - Avinashi - Anur - Coimbatore
• Bangalore - Ooty - Coimbatore

In the second option one has to still put up with 17 odd kms of the bad stretch between Chengapalli & Avinashi and I guess there is night time driving restrictions on the 3rd option.

How come you forgot the best option of them all - NH 209 ??

[luvurride]

Originally Posted by SR-71

But I took it as I had booked my stay in a hotel in Avinashi road (only to realize how bad a decision it was)

Well you could still take the Annur route from Avinashi and deviate at Kurumbapalayam to take Kalapatti road and join Avinashi road near Airport.

Originally Posted by SR-71

People going to Coimbatore might benefit from the following alternatives

• Chengapalli - Tirupur - Palladam - Coimbatore
• Chengapalli - Avinashi - Anur - Coimbatore
• Bangalore - Ooty - Coimbatore

Chengapalli-Avinashi is not all that bad. There are about 4 deviations but the roads have been widened so it shouldn't be a problem. I did it last Friday and it was manageable. However in the nights, one has to be wary of the deviations, as is the case with any road work.

[aroonanand]

Folks,

Am driving from Bangalore to Coimbatore on Friday (leaving Blr by 630 AM) and would appreciate your inputs on the best route, specifically for the last leg (Avinashi - Coimbatore), which I am told can take over 90 minutes with the road works going on.

I plan to do the tried and tested route using the NH:

Sarjapur - Attibele - Hosur - Krishnagiri - Dharmapuri - Salem - Bhavani - Avinashi - Coimbatore

Also, is there any way to bypass Salem? Whilst there is a bypass road that avoids the city, I see that there is considerable traffic even on the bypass with a few signals and hence you lose some time. Any pointers on the Mettur route (where to get off the GQ and where to rejoin) as well as the quality of the road would be wonderful !

[ampere]

Originally Posted by aroonanand

Also, is there any way to bypass Salem? Whilst there is a bypass road that avoids the city, I see that there is considerable traffic
even on the bypass with a few signals and hence you lose some time. Any pointers on the Mettur route (where to get off the GQ
and where to rejoin) as well as the quality of the road would be wonderful !

There is not need to find any bypass for Salem. The 4-lane GQ automatically takes you through nicely.
Just follow the sign-boards. One of the flow overs is tricky with lots of boards, Just need to be watchful. That's all.

You can bypass Avinashi-CBE by taking the route to Annur. But it depends where you want to go in CBE. If north CBE,
then can also do Avinashi-Annur-Karamadai and then come down south. As I said it depends on your destination in CBE.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by aroonanand

Folks,
Am driving from Bangalore to Coimbatore on Friday (leaving Blr by 630 AM) and would appreciate your inputs on the best route, specifically for the last leg (Avinashi - Coimbatore), which I am told can take over 90 minutes with the road works going on.
I plan to do the tried and tested route using the NH:
Sarjapur - Attibele - Hosur - Krishnagiri - Dharmapuri - Salem - Bhavani - Avinashi - Coimbatore

Originally Posted by ampere

There is not need to find any bypass for Salem. The 4-lane GQ automatically takes you through nicely.
Just follow the sign-boards. One of the flow overs is tricky with lots of boards, Just need to be watchful. That's all.

At Salem you need to turn right from NH7 and get onto NH47. You will see GRT Grand Hotel on the left, after that you can see a BP petrol bunk on the left (owned by Lorry Owners Association, look for the signage), just after this you will see a flyover overhead perpendicular to the road you're on. Just ahead you need to take the ramp on the left to get you to the top (in effect you will end up making a right turn from the NH7 road you were on.

Alternatively you can try the NH 209 route :
Bangalore-Kanakapura-Kollegal-Chamarajanagar-Sathyamangalam-Annur-Coimbatore
This way you avoid:
1.The 6 laning work between Hosur-Krishnagiri
2.Salem traffic (this may not be much of a problem if you start by 5am from Bangalore)
3.Road widening work between Chengapalli and beginning of L&T bypass stretch (where you would take a right turn onto Avinashi Road to get into Coimbatore city)

Hope this helps.

[ajithbr]

Originally Posted by aroonanand

Also, is there any way to bypass Salem? Whilst there is a bypass road that avoids the city, I see that there is considerable traffic even on the bypass with a few signals and hence you lose some time. Any pointers on the Mettur route (where to get off the GQ and where to rejoin) as well as the quality of the road would be wonderful !

I can share your concerns since it took about almost an hour for me to get onto NH-47 after the toll gate just before Salem town. As you said, even if there is a Salem bye-pass road exists, the traffic and the signals on the same for the last 2-3 kms before you can exit for NH-47 takes considerable time if you hit this stretch with a bit of bad luck, esp. on timings and weather(rainy time is more horrible because of bumper-to-bumper traffic and with some lorries having no reflectors but some things protruding out). If I sense such a possibility, I exit GQ from Omalur and join back at Sankari/Sankagiri. That is about 40 kms or so and would take close to 45 mins only, the only bottleneck being the Tharamangalam town.

[ramzsys]

Omalur-Sankari is smooth road, no doubt about that, but that doesn't save any time. There is truck traffic and overtaking them requires lot of patience.

Also, till 10 pm or so, there is this 2 wheeler menace. So NH7 is better anyday; if at all there is any delay it will be at the signal to enter Salem.

NH209 is a better alternative if the driver is rested adequately before the journey.

[arun_josie]

Originally Posted by aroonanand

Folks,

Also, is there any way to bypass Salem? Whilst there is a bypass road that avoids the city, I see that there is considerable traffic even on the bypass with a few signals and hence you lose some time.

If possible do a early start from bangalore and try to reach Salem by 7:00, you can escape from the Salem traffic.

[aroonanand]

Originally Posted by ampere

There is not need to find any bypass for Salem. The 4-lane GQ automatically takes you through nicely.
Just follow the sign-boards. One of the flow overs is tricky with lots of boards, Just need to be watchful. That's all.

You can bypass Avinashi-CBE by taking the route to Annur. But it depends where you want to go in CBE. If north CBE,
then can also do Avinashi-Annur-Karamadai and then come down south. As I said it depends on your destination in CBE.

I was referring to the existing Salem bypass which tends to have very high traffic after you cross the 5 roads signal and enter the bypass stretch till you get onto the flyover..... I have to go to Vadavalli in Coimbatore - does the Annur - Karamadai route help? And how do i take this route?

Originally Posted by NPV

Alternatively you can try the NH 209 route :
Bangalore-Kanakapura-Kollegal-Chamarajanagar-Sathyamangalam-Annur-Coimbatore

Hope this helps.

Thanks but I stay on Sarjapur road so the Sarjapur - Attibele - Hosur stretch works out to be easier for me rather than the Kanakapura route which involves a lot of travel within Bangalore.

Originally Posted by ajithbr

I can share your concerns since it took about almost an hour for me to get onto NH-47 after the toll gate just before Salem town.
If I sense such a possibility, I exit GQ from Omalur and join back at Sankari/Sankagiri. That is about 40 kms or so and would take close to 45 mins only, the only bottleneck being the Tharamangalam town.

Exactly my concern; thanks for the tip on the Omalur exit.

Originally Posted by ramzsys

Omalur-Sankari is smooth road, no doubt about that, but that doesn't save any time. There is truck traffic and overtaking them requires lot of patience.

Also, till 10 pm or so, there is this 2 wheeler menace. So NH7 is better anyday; if at all there is any delay it will be at the signal to enter Salem.

NH209 is a better alternative if the driver is rested adequately before the journey.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by arun_josie

If possible do a early start from bangalore and try to reach Salem by 7:00, you can escape from the Salem traffic.

Am planning to leave by 6-630 AM so I should hit Salem by 9 or so, which is peak hour traffic there !

[jagan0677]

Originally Posted by NPV

.....

Alternatively you can try the NH 209 route :
Bangalore-Kanakapura-Kollegal-Chamarajanagar-Sathyamangalam-Annur-Coimbatore
This way you avoid:
1.The 6 laning work between Hosur-Krishnagiri
2.Salem traffic (this may not be much of a problem if you start by 5am from Bangalore)
3.Road widening work between Chengapalli and beginning of L&T bypass stretch (where you would take a right turn onto Avinashi Road to get into Coimbatore city)

Hope this helps.

+ you avoid the tolls!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by aroonanand

I was referring to the existing Salem bypass which tends to have very high traffic after you cross the 5 roads signal and enter the bypass stretch till you get onto the flyover..... I have to go to Vadavalli in Coimbatore - does the Annur - Karamadai route help? And how do i take this route?

Then its actually perfect.

- The existing Salem by-pass is OK if you start early.
- To use the Annur option: Here is the route link


At Avinash look for the road to Annur on the right. At Annur you again have two options.
Either go to Karamadai and come via the Ooty road. Or take same BLR-CBE NH209 all the way to Ganapathy (route link)

I think the second one is an easier option. (Avinashi-Annur-Ganapathy)

[NPV]

Originally Posted by aroonanand

Thanks but I stay on Sarjapur road so the Sarjapur - Attibele - Hosur stretch works out to be easier for me rather than the Kanakapura route which involves a lot of travel within Bangalore.
....
Am planning to leave by 6-630 AM so I should hit Salem by 9 or so, which is peak hour traffic there !

From Sarjapur Road when you reach Attibele junction on Hosur Road, make a right turn and get onto NICE Road - in about 30 minutes you should be on Kanakapura Road.
Also, since you plan to start at 6-630AM you will hit peak traffic at Salem so going on Kanakapura route you will totally avoid the Salem traffic and with the lesser traffic on this route you will have a relaxed (scenic route too) drive.

[Voyager-1]

Update as of last week: The bypass around Avinashi is almost complete with still few diversions. However, we can now use the bypass without going through the Avinashi town.

But if one wants to go through Annur, then it is better to go through Avinashi town as the bypass joins the Coimbatore road after the diversion to Annur.

[aroonanand]

Thanks everyone for your tips. I completed my trip to CBE (onward on Friday and return yesterday). Used the familiar route of Sarjapur - Attibele - Hosur - Dharmapuri - Salem - Bhavani - Perundurai - Avinashi - CBE

Was able to cover the distance from my house on Sarjapur road near Wipro to Avinashi in a driving time of ~4 hours maintaining a constant speed of ~100 kmph. Good roads with some minor delays on the Hosur - Krishnagiri leg due to the road widening. Avinashi - CBE is a bit of a nightmare which takes close to 90 minutes for the 50 odd km stretch... Most of the road work seem to be completed but then you have to drive on one side of the road, then switch to the other, then to a service lane etc intermittently which reduces speed.. Also, the deviations are horribly done with vehicles having to go through really uneven patches for the deviations (practically no leveling is done so you have to almost run through the erstwhile concrete median / divider to go to the other side)...

The problem is compounded by slow moving trucks which eat up most of the roads and further worsened by TNSTC drivers who drive like maniacs. They always try to overtake other vehicles (and invariably do not succeed simply because their battered and beaten rattletraps called buses do not have the power to overtake) and thereby obstructing oncoming traffic, almost forcing vehicles on the opposite to get off the road... Seriously wonder who gave these idiots a driving license in the first place...

Same experience on the return leg too - Left CBE at 11 AM and it was 1230 by the time I crossed Avinashi. Reached Blr at 530 PM. Was amazed at the speed / pick up of Volvos on the ghats.. Was trailing a KPN B9R on the Salem - Dharmapuri stretch and the ease with which the bus pulled forward to overtake the crawling trucks / AL / Tata buses was amazing.. Was giving sedans a run for its money whilst being driven carefully with no rash maneuvers...

Long traffic pile ups at the Krishnagiri and Attibele toll gates. Attibele took a good 15 - 20 minutes. Why cant these folks think of automated lanes for frequent travelers - why not give an RFID based sticker which opens the gate automatically (similar to the RFID access at most IT companies) or the smart pass system in UAE / Singapore... So much of delays can be avoided.

Stopped at the usual Krishna Inn (Hosur - Krishnagiri stretch) on the onward leg for breakfast. On the way back, stopped at Hotel Saravana Bhavan near Sankari for lunch.. Seemed to be a very new place and food was good.. This place is on the right side if you are driving to Bangalore from CBE, ~ 1 km after the Sankari toll plaza. Also stopped at Rajabhojanam on the Salem - Dharmapuri leg for coffee which was very good at this newly opened place... Also saw an A2B on the Salem - Dharmapuri stretch.. So looks like there are a lot more options for good food on this route, unlike the Blr - Chennai stretch where there is nothing clean n good after Krishna Inn / A2B / Kamath on the Hosur - Krishnagiri leg.