[Sree73]

One of the Kuthiran Tunnels will be opened today. ONLY FOR flood relief transport vehicles, Ambulances, Police and Fire force.
Reports Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi.
Tunnel will be open during 8AM - 6PM.

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

Thank you Sree! Appreciate your help. I'll be taking the same route home tomorrow.

Reached home safe, although a little rattled. Took the NH47 > Alathur > Pazhayannur > Chelakara > Wadakancherry > Thrissur. After you turn off from the highway, the roads are good albeit winding and narrow. Once you join the Kodangallur-Thrissur route is when the surface gets bad.

A few kilometers after you join the Kodangallur-Thrissur route, you'll get this:



This patch is just about 1km in length, but you'll be crawling in 2nd gear (unless you want your passengers to barf). Once you cross this, then it's good roads till Thrissur.

Kuthiran is also open for traffic. However, I heard that there's a rock hanging dangerously and it's just matter of time before it falls (don't know how true this is).

[Sree73]

Originally Posted by Sree73

One of the Kuthiran Tunnels will be opened today. ONLY FOR flood relief transport vehicles, Ambulances, Police and Fire force.
Reports Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi.
Tunnel will be open during 8AM - 6PM.

News link from Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi - https://www.mathrubhumi.com/mobile/p...cles-1.3082825

[Geo_Ipe]

Does anyone know if Valparai is accessible by road currently? Read in the news regarding multiple landslides on the Pollachi - Valparai & Athirapalli - Valparai routes.

Does anyone know the latest?

[i20ian]

Originally Posted by Geo_Ipe

Does anyone know if Valparai is accessible by road currently? Read in the news regarding multiple landslides on the Pollachi - Valparai & Athirapalli - Valparai routes.

Does anyone know the latest?

Pollachi valparai route has witnessed multiple landslides especially near Attakatti. The condition is bad and it'll take time to rectify it fully.

Drove from Palakkad to Kozhikode today. Took Mundur Kongad Cherpulassery Perinthalmanna route. The roads are very bad and almost non existant from Kongad to Mangalamkunnu.

Perinthalmanna town and Malappuram bypass has very bad stretches. Other sections are manageable. But watch out for the occasional pothole which can turn out to be very deep.

[sunil_k_u]

Hi All,

I am looking to drive on below the route to Kerala next week:

Bangalore -> Hosur -> Salem ->Namakkal -> Dindugal -> Theni -> Kumali -> Mundakkayam -> Erumeli -> Ranni

Has any one taken this route recently? Any idea what is the road condition, especially the section (Dindugal -> Theni -> Kumali -> Mundakkayam -> Erumeli -> Ranni )?

I had cancelled a trip that was planned for the week when the flood and related disaster happened, and am now considering to drive as the situation in Kerala got a little better (read as water levels are down now). However, I am not sure about the road conditions on the above route. Any information/ pointers on the road conditions of above route would be of great help. Thanks

[Sree73]

Back in Bangalore today from Thrissur. Took the Kuthiran route. Started @6:15AM from Karalam (Near Irinjalakuda) and reached Whitefield by 3:15 with 2 breaks (Breakfast/Lunch).
Traffic was ok through Kuthiran, but road condition from Mannuthy till end of Kuthiran is extremely bad. Worth taking the route I had taken during the onward travel. (Alathur-Pazhayannur-Chelakkara-Wadakkanchery-Thrissur).

[pramodpk]

Drove Bangalore(Whitefield) to Vaikom on Aug 22.
Start time - 4:50 AM
End time - 3:05 PM
Distance - 565 KMS
Break time - 30 mins

Drive was smooth till Coimbatore bypass. There was a long line on vehicles(Almost 1 km long) at the second toll booth. Took 45 mins to cover Coimbatore bypass.

There were some deep potholes below the Vadakkencherry flyover. Had to crawl through the entire Kuthiran stretch in 1st and 2nd gears. Some temporary repair work was being done in Kuthiran using JCB, WIP sections between Kuthiran and Mannuthy were also broken. Mannuthy to Kalamassery was OK. Except for some small potholes, highway was fine. Traffic was lighter than usual between Chalakkudy and Kalamassery.

Drove Vaikom to Whitefield yesterday

Start time - 5:15 AM
End Time - 3:05 PM
Break - 30 mins
Distance - 560 KMS

Mannuthy - Vadakkenchery stretch was much better. Some deep potholes were filled. Could cross kuthiran in about 10 mins.

[SajiNSalin]

Originally Posted by sunil_k_u

Hi All,

I am looking to drive on below the route to Kerala next week:

Bangalore -> Hosur -> Salem ->Namakkal -> Dindugal -> Theni -> Kumali -> Mundakkayam -> Erumeli -> Ranni

I had travelled from Trivandrum to Ranny (Mannamaruthy) yesterday. The MC road upto Adoor is in good shape. I faced traffic jams in Venjaramood and Kottarakara, the delay of about 15 minutes waiting for the police to clear the traffic.

Roads in Ranny and upto Mannamaruthy are in general ok with some potholed sections.

There were landslides near Vandiperiyar, but KTDC Thekkady told the road from Kottayam to Kumali is open, however, Periyar sanctuary is closed to visitors.

[sunil_k_u]

Many thanks SajiNSalin for the update. I too got similar information that the Cumbum --> Kumily ghat section through the Periyar Tiger Reserve is closed due to bad road conditions after the rains. I am told that even two-wheelers are not allowed to take this route.


Alternate route to reach Kerala from Cumbum is via Cumbum-mettu road. ie, Cumbum --> Parakkadavu --> Anniyar Thozhu --> Kattappana --> Marikkulam --> Chinnar --> Kuttikkanam --> Mundakkayam --> Erumeli --> Ranni

Has anyone taken this route recently? Any latest update on the road conditions? Thanks.

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by Geo_Ipe

Does anyone know if Valparai is accessible by road currently? Read in the news regarding multiple landslides on the Pollachi - Valparai & Athirapalli - Valparai routes.

Does anyone know the latest?

Athirapalli - Valparai road is closed for traffic. People travelling that way please make sure it has opened before you set off.

Pollachi - Valparai is open. All landslides have been cleared.

[rajarams]

Have a pre-planned road-trip out of CBE from Sep13-16. Valparai, athirapalli was the original plan.
- i see that Valparai from CBE side is open. Is the road to athirapally expected to open soon? Also, i was looking for a round trip originally i.e. cbe, palakkad, thirussur, chalakudy, athirapally, valparai, cbe. Is that possible?
- Is the route to Munnar from CBE ok now?
thanks in advance.

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

Don't know if this has been discussed in TBHP threads or not, but I learned this the hard way

1. Self Drive Rental Cars going in to Kerala require an Annual Permit Fee Paid Receipt in the Car
   
2. The Self Drive Cars need to have the Registration Number Displayed on the sides.
   

I don't think the first one is true - unless you're referring to the All India permit or the specific state permit (not the one to enter a state temporarily). The second one, yes, that is correct. Self drive vehicles that I've driven so far from various rentals all have had the numbers displayed on the sides at the rear quarter panel.

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

I have to approach the RTO Counter at the checkpost on Kerala State Border to pay the same. I was warned that I should be definitely doing this at the first Kerala RTO counter enroute.

That is true as well. You've to make the state entry tax at the first RTO checkpost.

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

I was informed by a very friendly AMVI in Charge there that I need to pay the Annual Tax and there is no provision to pay any pro-rata for the period I was going to be in the state and since the vehicle I was having did not have a side Registration Display, a fine also will have to be paid.

Annual Permit Fee - INR 7,200.00
Fines for the non display INR 800.00
Total INR 8,000/-
(not sure if this was the exact breakup or not as the receipt was showing 7,700+ Compunding Fee 200+ Cess of 100)

That was a shocker. I got in touch with Rental Company and they had a talk with the MVI and were advised that this is a Change of Rules and if the owners of the vehicle were not aware, then that is there problem.

This is incorrect! They're fleecing you here!

As per the current prevailing regulation they're supposed to charge for the quarter (no pun intended). The fees will also depend on the engine size of the vehicles. For example, a vehicle which has a engine size less than 1500cc will be charged Rs.500/-, whereas a vehicle with engine size more than 1500cc will be charged Rs.1500/-.

Let me explain - when they say they'll charge you for the quarter, it means three months (Jan, Feb, Mar = Q1; Apr, May, Jun = Q2; Jul, Aug, Sep = Q3; Oct, Nov, Dec = Q4). For example, if you were to travel to Kerala in a Scorpio S5 (which has a 2.2L engine) in Q3 -

• in the month of July, you'll be charged Rs.1500/- plus cess (for July, August and September)
• in the month of August, you'll be charged Rs.1000/- plus cess (for August and September).
• in the month of September, you'll be charged Rs.500/- plus cess (for September)

I traveled to Thrissur from Bangalore on August 23rd in a rented Scorpio S5 with a 2.2L engine and paid Rs.1000/- change at the Walayar checkpost. Initially when I presented the papers, the officer told me about paying for the year, but then I spoke to the CI incharge and clarified the fee structure (even he had to call up people to get clarification).

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

He also advised the owners that he will be/can seize the vehicle as it was technically in the state without a Valid Permit and Incorrect Registration number display

While this is true, they would use this as a scare tactic. My suggestion - don't piss them off. I spent a long time trying to sort out the confusion with the officers, but while I wasn't amused at the state of affairs (they were calling up people to clarify the taxation law), I had a smile on my face.

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

As per my understanding in discussing the issue with RTO/MVI is that the Rental Guys have cars that have Kerala RTO Permit fees paid and they charge and additional fee for such cars when it is rented for trips to Kerala.

The rental vehicle should already have paid the All India and/or the specific state tax. The state entry fees is over and above the existing tax paid.

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

Thought I should share this information for the benefit of others who are planing such trips.

Thank you for sharing.

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

I traveled to Thrissur from Bangalore on August 23rd in a rented Scorpio S5 with a 2.2L engine and paid Rs.1000/- change at the Walayar checkpost.

Here is the receipt for the tax paid at the Walayar checkpost:



Initially they said it would be ₹1000 + cess, but I guess they gave me a discount for the amount of time I spent talking to them

[sukhoi30]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

See if a postponement or re-booking can be arranged, if not wait for another week and check with the resorts on how the conditions are. They would be the right people to guide you on reality, especially the last mile connectivity.

I called the resort to check about the local conditions. Presently there is no rain and they say that road from Kochi to Munnar has opened up and safe to drive. they also said that the area was not flooded and there was one small incident of landslide nearby. rest everything in and around Munnar is fine. The Kochi airport is slated to open up today. Some airline offering refund up to Sept 10th.

Bad news is that rain and thurdershowers is predicted for the next week in Munnar and surrounding areas. I am afraid if that will be heavy enough to cause further damage.

Can anyone corroborate the resorts claim of Kochi to Munnar roadd condition? you never know if they are saying that so people will not cancel.