[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by gadadhar

Small addtion coolclouds.. I have driven to Kerala during the Diwali w/e during night. There are few huge potholes around 10 kms before Kuthiran (not sure about the place name, it is at the blind curve where road used to be bad always) . I had hit one at high speed (could not avoid during the night) and damaged my Lenso alloy

I did Palghat-Trichur stretch after 6.30am and didn't notice any pothole before Kuthiran other than patched rough surfaces.

[wmanu]

Originally Posted by KappaPower

Taking the route via Thoppur - Mettur - Bhavani will save around 25kms compared to going through Salem bypass. I have verified this with my car. But the thing is that time taken is the same in both routes as we can hit easily 100-120 in the four lane NH47 compared to two lane Mettur - Mecheri -Thoppur road where we pass through a number of villages and speed breakers.
- KP

Thanks for the update, KP. If the difference is only 25km, then we won’t be saving much in terms of time and money by taking the Mettur route, right? On a 4lane highway, without much gearshift, we could match the fuel spent on 2lane road with speed breakers.

[Sony]

I have just completed a Pala-Bangalore return trip thru Calicut yesterday. Below are the updates on road conditions.

Route taken was Pala-Koothattukulam-Muvattupuzha-Angamali-Trichur-Edappal-Calicut (Bypass)-Kalpetta-Sultan Battery-Muthanga-Gundulpet-Mysore-Bangalore

Pala- Calicut route via Trichur , Edappal is in manageable condition now. Finally the bad strech has been re-tarred in some parts and patch working has been completed in other places. It took 7 Hrs for me to complete the Pala-Calicut route with a 30-45 minutes break in between for breakfast and snacks. Angamaly -Trichur strech is having potholes in some places and lots of patch works.

Calicut-Bangalore route is still in good condition excpet the Wayanad Ghat section. Most of the hair pin bends, roads have disappeared and only stones are visible in road. Very difficult drive for Cars. Also there are occasional potholes in after Kalpetta in the NH, so need to be more careful in night. We covered the Calicut-Bangalore strech in 7.5 Hrs in Day time. (With a 30 minutes break in between)

[Sony]

Below is the latest updates on the Road conditions on this strech.

Bangalore - Started at 5:15 AM from Marathahalli
Hosur - 6:30 AM. Got into a traffic block for 15 Minutes here
(Short Break-30 Minutes stop for Break Fast /Fuelling at Adayar Anandabhavan, Krishnagiri)
Salem - 9.30 AM (Salem ByPass)
Didndigul - 12:05 PM (Dindigul Bypass)
(Break- 30 Minutes- Lunch at Travancore House Hotel, Periyakulam. Good hotel and food was also great)
Kumily - 4 PM.
From Kumily the road was bad till Vandiperiyar, approx 10-15 Kms. Average speed I got was only 15-20 km on this strech.
Mundakkayam - 6 PM
Ponkunnam - 6:30 PM (Heavy raining started)
Pala - Reached home at 7:15 PM

Excpet a few Kilometers after Kumily, all the road was good. Roads till Dindigul is excellent with 4 Line all along and you can cover this sterch very fast, in 6- 6.5 Hrs including the breaks.

From Didndigul to Kumily, roads are good (2 Line Highway) with little traffic. This can be covered in 3.5-4 Hrs time including breaks.

From Kumily to Kottayam, roads are good except 15 Kms bad strech from Kumily and other parts, it is occasional potholes and patches. Kumily to Kottayam can be completed in 3- 3.5 Hrs time.

[vinay.pillai]

@Sony..How much was the distance when you traveled B'lore - Kottayam

[RSimonS]

Originally Posted by vinay.pillai

@Sony..How much was the distance when you traveled B'lore - Kottayam

I had done the same stretch after Diwali, if I am not wrong it was @610 KMs.

[Sony]

Hi Vinay,

It was 630 km from Marathahalli to Kottayam. From my home to Hosur it is 43 Kms. So this should be approximately 585 Kms from Hosur. (Via Salem, Dindigul, Kumily)

Best part is that you can cover this stretch very fast upto Kambam. I completed atleast 15-16 trips thru Coimbatore and same number of trips thru Calicut. I have found that this is the least boring route compared to other two routes. Also there is hardly any traffic throughout this route. Only place you will find traffic is in Salem By pass. After that, again it's a breeze. !

Also be careful about the two wheeler people who comes in wrong side on the fast line (Salem-Dindigul stretch). In turns, it is difficult to see them. Better drive keeping a bit distance from the right edge in turns. I have seen one accident on the opposite line, after Namakkal where one person died on spot after his two wheeler had been hit by a Logan, on the fast line. Too sad to see.

[KappaPower]

Originally Posted by wmanu

Thanks for the update, KP. If the difference is only 25km, then we won’t be saving much in terms of time and money by taking the Mettur route, right? On a 4lane highway, without much gearshift, we could match the fuel spent on 2lane road with speed breakers.

Yes, nothing significant in terms of saving time and fuel. You can zip through the 4 lane, except some bad pathces in between where construction work was going on.

[laluks]

How about BLR-Salem_coimbatore-palghat-Ankamali - Muvattupuzha - kottayam road?

[wmanu]

Originally Posted by laluks

How about BLR-Salem_coimbatore-palghat-Ankamali - Muvattupuzha - kottayam road?

Till you reach Valayaar, roads are superb, except a small stretch near Salem. The moment you enter Kerala, you can see/feel the potholes and it is two lanes all the way till Kottayam.

[KappaPower]

MC Road was much better compared to NH47, but don't know the current condition after the rains. Much of the NH47 stretch has been patched, yet the drive is not that smooth. From Valayar to Alathur(Palghat) the road is good, but after that till Pattikkad its a rough stretch, especially at Kuthiran. From Pattikkad to Mannuthy, the road is good and again from Mannuthy to Angamaly pretty rough with some streches of 4 lane in between.

[shajufx]

Originally Posted by laluks

How about BLR-Salem_coimbatore-palghat-Ankamali - Muvattupuzha - kottayam road?

I am doing this route this Thursday. Strictly sticking to NH7 and NH47, and the MC Road from Angamali - Muvattupuzha - Koothattukulam (Destination town). Starting from Hebbal possibly by 5am. Will update the road condition once I am back on Sunday, 8th.

[laluks]

Originally Posted by shajufx

I am doing this route this Thursday. Strictly sticking to NH7 and NH47, and the MC Road from Angamali - Muvattupuzha - Koothattukulam (Destination town). Starting from Hebbal possibly by 5am. Will update the road condition once I am back on Sunday, 8th.

Keenly waiting for the update.
From a fellow travellor I heard that he had done coimbatore - cochin by 4.5 hours in an 800 yesterday, and the patches are ok.

[shajufx]

I think its a pleasure to drive until we reach the Kerala boarder, from where the roads are just 2 lane and the patch works are all over. MC road that starts from Angamaly were in the best condition 2 years back, I remember maintaining a good speed until Muvattupuzha. This time my main concentration will be a relaxed drive, enjoying my Fiesta to the full, intending to reach home (mum's place) just before dinner. Driving back on Sunday would be the best time and day to test the speeds at different stretches. Lets see ! Fingers crossed.

[sj_koova]

Originally Posted by shajufx

I am doing this route this Thursday. Strictly sticking to NH7 and NH47, and the MC Road from Angamali - Muvattupuzha - Koothattukulam (Destination town). Starting from Hebbal possibly by 5am. Will update the road condition once I am back on Sunday, 8th.

Shaju, did you go through Salem or Mettur?
I am keen to know how much of Salem-Coimbatore 4-lining is completed.