[bbhavan]

Most of the Roads in kerala are good before the monsoon season starts. But the torential rain ruins all the efforts done by the pwd.
We shoud applaud the good effort done by the cash starved govt, though we know about the corruption, but it is the part and parcel of the system.

Pardon india , Gandhiji


.

[SajiNSalin]

Daisyb,

How much time did you take to reach Bangalore from Trivandrum via Palode, Kulathupuzha, Thenmala, Shenkottai?

It would be useful to know when you started and when you arrived in Bangalore as well as the distance covered. How was the road condition?

Regards

Saji

[M35]

Hi guys. I will be driving to palakkad from bangalore in about two weeks time. I would like to know two things whether

1. The 6 lane work some where near Hosur is finished or does it affect the traveling time?

2. How is the state of the stretch beween Avinashi and L&T?

My vehicle is Scorpio m-Hawk
thanks in advance.

[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by M35

Hi guys. I will be driving to palakkad from bangalore in about two weeks time. I would like to know two things whether

1. The 6 lane work some where near Hosur is finished or does it affect the traveling time?

2. How is the state of the stretch beween Avinashi and L&T?

My vehicle is Scorpio m-Hawk
thanks in advance.

The Hosur-Krishnagiri stretch is in decent shape with diversions and will not eat up time much. At the same time, Krishnagiri-Hosur can take more time due to trucks climbing the ghat section slowly. You may get stuck slow moving behind trucks in both lines at places.

Avinashi-L&T is doable with few diversions but there are some alternate routes discussed few pages back.

[bijujj]

Originally Posted by bijujj

I drove from Chennai to Kottyam yesterday (23rd). Took Madurai->Theni->Kambam->Kumaly route. Roads are good. I could see a few occassional pot holes towards Theni, I drove at a very sedate speed, never exceeding 80KMph, so it was quite ok for me. Some isolated road work is going on in Theni -> Kambam road, but nothing to worry about. I drove a Jazz and didn't have any issue in driving through those portions.

Surprisingly we didnt face much of congestion at Kumaly check post, though it was Sabarimala season.

Just a word of caution. Traffic was heavier from Theni all the way upto Mundakayam, than usual and many of the vehicles (from the number plate, I guess mostly from other states) were driving rashly. So please be extra cautious on the ghat sections.

One of my family friends drove from Bangalore on last Saturday through Dindigul->Theni straight route (He didnt take the Vaigai route), and told that road conditions have improved a lot and is very much drivable. He drove an Innova.

Thanks
Biju

I came back yesterday to Chennai (from Kottayam). This time I took Angamaly-Trissur-CBE-Salem-Ulundurpet road. From Trissur to all the way till Avinashi, the progress was very slow. Will not recommend this road to anyone who drives from Chennai. Kumaly route was far better though you have to do the ghat roads.

[rameshnanda]

Originally Posted by bijujj

I came back yesterday to Chennai (from Kottayam). This time I took Angamaly-Trissur-CBE-Salem-Ulundurpet road. From Trissur to all the way till Avinashi, the progress was very slow.

How is the road condition from Salem to Attur? Is progressing well? I got to know that Tolls are open in this stretch till Ulundurpet. How much toll did you pay in this route?

[bijujj]

Originally Posted by rameshnanda

How is the road condition from Salem to Attur? Is progressing well? I got to know that Tolls are open in this stretch till Ulundurpet. How much toll did you pay in this route?

Road condition from Salem to Ulundurpet was excellent. A few minor diversions are there. I think I paied toll twice. Sorry, I do not remember the amount.

[dhanushmenon]

Intend driving from Pondicherry to Kochi with a stop at Coimbatore enroute on the 5th of Jan. The road till Avinashi through Attur, I know is in good shape. Can anyone provide the latest on the state of roads from Avinashi to CBE?

Originally Posted by rameshnanda

How is the road condition from Salem to Attur? Is progressing well? I got to know that Tolls are open in this stretch till Ulundurpet. How much toll did you pay in this route?

I drove through this route on 22nd Dec. Initially when you peel off from Salem towards Attur, for the first 4- 5 Kms, it is a two way lane. After that the roads are pretty nice. Can easily cruise above 100 Kmph. There are 3 tolls as i rememeber between Salem and Ulundurpet. And I think the rates are about Rs 40 and Rs 55. Don't exactly remember.

[rameshnanda]

Originally Posted by bijujj

Road condition from Salem to Ulundurpet was excellent. A few minor diversions are there. I think I paied toll twice. Sorry, I do not remember the amount.

Originally Posted by dhanushmenon

I drove through this route on 22nd Dec. Initially when you peel off from Salem towards Attur, for the first 4- 5 Kms, it is a two way lane. After that the roads are pretty nice. Can easily cruise above 100 Kmph. There are 3 tolls as i rememeber between Salem and Ulundurpet. And I think the rates are about Rs 40 and Rs 55. Don't exactly remember.

Thanks biju, dhanush. That is very good news from both of you. Now, this route should be the fastest route to reach Salem from Chennai. When I last drove, I came across 2 unfinished flyovers between Salem and Attur. Is that also completed now?

[pramodpk]

Drove from Bangalore to Vaikom on Dec 22nd Via Nilambur. Started at 5:00 AM from Brookefields and reached home only at 6:45 PM (this includes total breaks of around 1 hour 15 mins). This was due to the Christmas rush in Kerala. Reached Nilambur at 11:30 AM but took more than 7 hours to cover 215 KMs in Kerala. It is frustrating to pay Rs 55/- for the Mannuthy - Edapally stretch. There were long lines of vehicles at almost all traffic signals. The road surface is not great either. The Nadugani Ghats has deteriorated but traffic is very less.

Drove from Vaikom to Bangalore yesterday. Took the conventional route Via Kuthiran. Started at 6:20 AM from Vaikom and reached Brookefields at 5:15 PM with total breaks of around 1 hour. Kuthiran is patched up but the ride is bumpy. There are 2 places where you have to stop and proceed but such places are there in all other routes. I started from the Paliyekkara toll booth at 7:50 AM and stopped for fuel 6 KMs before Palakkad bypass at 9:15 AM - 63 KMs in 1 hour 25 mins which is not bad. Palakkad - Walayar is in good shape. Walayar to Coimbatore bypass is also repaired but the progress was really slow. 2 new hotels are opened on either side of the first toll both when coming from Coimbatore side.

[pramodpk]

Originally Posted by M35

Hi guys. I will be driving to palakkad from bangalore in about two weeks time. I would like to know two things whether

1. The 6 lane work some where near Hosur is finished or does it affect the traveling time?

2. How is the state of the stretch beween Avinashi and L&T?

My vehicle is Scorpio m-Hawk
thanks in advance.

1. The 6 laning work will increase your travelling time by 5 - 20 mins.

2. One side of Avinashi bypass is open (since April 2012). Hence you don't have to touch Avinashi - follow sign boards to Coimbatore and not Avinashi while going and Salem while returning. The CBE bypass to Chengapally was less stressful yesterday even though 4 laning is not complete.

[rex_varghese]

We did the Palakkad-Shornur-Trichur route during our onward trip. Though the road is pretty good, it took us a long time to cover this stretch due to heavy traffic and diversions near Trichur town. It worked out ok for us since we had to visit couple of relatives on this stretch.

During our return trip, we took the Pollachi-Palladam-Tiruppur-Chengapally detour. We turned right from Mangalam Palam, after Wadakanchery. Though the road is just two-lane, surface is great and there was less traffic since we did this stretch on a Sunday morning. It's a great option since it saves the bad roads all the way till Chengappally bye-pass and you get directly onto the toll-road. The only trouble was the minor direction issues in Tiruppur, which my Motorola Razr Maxx helped us to overcome.

Regards
Rex

[RobC]

I have an upcoming trip to Keezhpally in Kannur district and have a few queries regarding the route to be chosen.I am planning to start from Trivandrum at about 2pm on a Saturday and planning to stop for the night at Kunnamkulam.

- Would I benefit from going to Angamaly on the M.C. Road and continuing on to Kunnamkulam through Thrissur, in terms of time and traffic?

- Recent posts seem to indicate that the toll highway to Thrissur is not worth the toll paid, given all the lengthy queues at the traffic lights? Would it give no advantage over NH17, given my destination is Kunnamkulam?

- How much time should I budget for the trip from Kunnamkulam to Keerzhpally, if I start at around 5:30 am? Which is the best road option to turn off from NH17 towards Mattannur - Iritty?

[denver85]

Done Trichur - Bangalore through Trichur - Vadakkenchery - Nenmara - Kollengode - Pollachi - Palladam - Kangayam - Perundurai - Salem - Krishnagiri - Hosur - Attibele - Sarjapur - Varatur - AECS Layout on Sunday (December 31,2012). The road and traffic conditions as follows:

Start time- 03:00 PM
End Time - 12:30 PM

Trichur to Vadakkenchery (Kuthiran) - The road condition is not bad as expected. Almost all the potholes are patch worked which will offer a bumpy ride. There are only 3-4 sections which are bad. Expect some bad potholes just after some good stretches, so please be careful if traveling in night. The roads are very much manageable. If you are coming from Ernakulam side deviation through Wadakkanchery is not worth now(According to me). The traffic was very less on that day.
Vaddakkenchery to Pollachi - Excellent roads with sparse traffic.
Pollachi to Palladam - Excellent with moderate traffic. The road condition is really good. The traffic was very less in Pollachi and Palladam town.
Palladam to Kangayam - Excellent road with heavy traffic till Avinashipalayam. The traffic is moderate after that till Perundurai.
Perundurai to Salem - Excellent with moderate traffic.
Salem to Thoppur - Excellent with moderate traffic. The truck traffic was on higher side near the Thoppur ghats. It took 20 mins to cross the Thoppur L&T toll booth at around 9.30.
Thoppur to Krishnagiri - Excellent roads with moderate traffic.
Krishnagiri to Hosur - I was expecting heavy traffic as per the experience in Thoppur. But the traffic was less and it took only 40 minutes to reach Hosur from Krishnagiri.
Hosur to Attibele - The traffic in Hosur town was moderate. Took around 3 minutes to cross the Attibele toll.
Attibele to AECS Layout - Excellent roads with zero traffic. Took only 25 minutes to cover this distance.
Hope it helps !!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by denver85

Done Trichur - Bangalore through Trichur - Vadakkenchery - Nenmara - Kollengode - Pollachi - Palladam - Kangayam - Perundurai - Salem - Krishnagiri - Hosur - Attibele - Sarjapur - Varatur - AECS Layout on Sunday (December 31,2012). The road and traffic conditions as follows:

So looks like this routing does help. Without any uncertainty of traffic jams/bad roads etc, one can cruise. Also enough places to break on the way.

And off course also breaks the monotony of 4-lane.