[sandsun7]

Originally Posted by binaiks

Here is a news about that from Manorama News.

Actually it is not an order yet, just a suggestion by the HC to the government to consider ban on traffic. But if at all an order of any sort is pronounced, it will surely hit tourists and localites hard!
Such a paradox- After a lot of hue and cry, Karnataka HC urging the government to speed up the work on the 'alternate' Hunsur-Kutta road, funds sanctioned after long delay, work going on, and now totally unexpectedly, this !

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by binaiks

Here is a news about that from Manorama News. The news article says that the order is following a PIL filed by a Wayanad based Environment forum. It says that 19kms of the route goes through the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, and hence is a threat to the wildlife. The recent KA-KL govts discussion had ended up in no concrete resolution - this HC order will only make life difficult to passengers in this area.

That cramps the choices for those driving through the night to North Kerala further. Apart from the Hunsur-Virajpet-Kannur & the Palakkad-Perinthalmanna route, there does not appear to be any other route for those travelling from Bangalore/ Mysore to Kozhikode?

But the HD Kote-Kattikulam road is still open at night? Will that allow vehicles to reach Mananthavady?

[binand]

Originally Posted by binaiks

this HC order will only make life difficult to passengers in this area.

Originally Posted by sandsun7

Actually it is not an order yet, just a suggestion by the HC to the government to consider ban on traffic.

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Apart from the Hunsur-Virajpet-Kannur & the Palakkad-Perinthalmanna route, there does not appear to be any other route for those travelling from Bangalore/ Mysore to Kozhikode?

I am of the opinion that banning night travel only on one or two of the roads through the Nilgiris (Wayanad/Bandipore/Nagarhole/Mudumalai wildlife sanctuaries) while skipping all the others is not correct; the restrictions should apply to all of them. I actually support the ban - if the road users had been even the slightest bit concerned about the wildlife, matters wouldn't have come to this.

I personally think the day to day life of locals (Wayanad district) won't be much affected. I have several relatives living there - their governance, economic, education, healthcare etc. ties are all with Calicut. The impact will be on:

- Tourists driving down from Bangalore.
- Employees, small business owners etc. from Kerala working in the Mysore-Bangalore belt.
- Fresh farm produce supply to North Kerala.
- Other truck traffic.

The Perintalmanna route is via Nilambur-Gudallur, isn't it? In which case entering Karnataka would be a problem as I understand the Gudallur-Gundlupet NH67 is also blocked for traffic during nights.

[sandsun7]

Originally Posted by binand

I am of the opinion that banning night travel only on one or two of the roads through the Nilgiris (Wayanad/Bandipore/Nagarhole/Mudumalai wildlife sanctuaries) while skipping all the others is not correct; the restrictions should apply to all of them. I actually support the ban - if the road users had been even the slightest bit concerned about the wildlife, matters wouldn't have come to this.

I am not against any ban on night time traffic, but the government should also look and work into providing good viable alternative routes for traffic before imposing any ban. It is not that there are no alternative routes, it is that there is no action taken to even look into developing them. I would not mind travelling a few km extra if that alternate road is good enough. See the current situation now - If Tholpetty road is also closed, the only alternate road to reach Kozhikode side during night would be via Hunsur-Gonikoppal-Virajpet-Kannur of which Hunsur-Virajpet stretch has been in worst condition since last 2 years!

Rail traffic between Palakkad and Coimbatore also pass through a critical wildlife zone, somewhere near Walayar, and there has been incidents of animals coming under the wheels of trains. But since there are no viable alternatives, nothing has been done there, except imposing speed restrictions.

Originally Posted by binand

The Perintalmanna route is via Nilambur-Gudallur, isn't it? In which case entering Karnataka would be a problem as I understand the Gudallur-Gundlupet NH67 is also blocked for traffic during nights.

I think Kumar Sir meant via Salem-Palakkad-Perinthalmanna. Very long route but!

[silversteed]

Drove back to Bangalore this morning. Left home at 3 o'clock sharp. Took the NH-47 & NH-7 route.

03:10 - Chandranagar, Palakkad
04:10 - Neelambur
05:30 - Vaikundam
06:00 - Passed Salem city limits
07:30 - Shoolagiri
08:30 - BETL toll gate
09:10 - Koramangala

Next to no traffic until Shoolagiri. Shoolagiri-Hosur-Silk Board was as expected, crowded.

Road condition is decent between Chandranagar and Madukkarai, good enough for a relaxed cruise except for the diversions. Neelambur-Avinashi is good surface, but no lane markings or reflective signs. There are 3 or 4 speed-breakers. When you see a board saying '30km speed', start decelerating and you'll find one within 50 metres. Watch out for those (men)Ace mini-trucks coming on the wrong side with highbeams on. Definitely not a good thing. No rains this morning, so the drive was relaxed all along.

[pvkm]

Plan to take the following route in a few days. Would greatly appreciate a sitrep on current conditions or suggestions on alternate routes. I'm traveling with family and avoid night driving. Thanks!

1. Bangalore - Kanakapura - Sathyamangalam - Palakkad. (My first time on this route. I normally take the Hosur - Krishnagiri - Salem route but want to try an alternate.)

2. Palakkad - Ottapalam - Wadakanchery - Guruvayur (Is there a better alternative?)

3. Guruvayur - Ponnani - Tirurangadi - Kozhikode (Just picked this off Google. Is there a better alternative?)

4. Kozhikode - Sulthan Bathery - Mysore - Bangalore

[kala]

Originally Posted by pvkm

Plan to take the following route in a few days. Would greatly appreciate a sitrep on current conditions or suggestions on alternate routes. I'm traveling with family and avoid night driving. Thanks!

1. Bangalore - Kanakapura - Sathyamangalam - Palakkad. (My first time on this route. I normally take the Hosur - Krishnagiri - Salem route but want to try an alternate.)

No problems with roads on this route except for the patchy NH47 section between Coimbatore and Palghat. (Remember to take the Annur-Karumathampatti road to avoid Coimbatore city. You'll join NH47 at Karumathampatti, which is about 10 kms before start of the L&T byepass at Neelambur)

2. Palakkad - Ottapalam - Wadakanchery - Guruvayur (Is there a better alternative?)

Recent reports indicate that NH47 is pretty much drivable on the Palghat-Trichur section. In that case NH47 to Mannuthi and then from there on to Guruvayoor would probably be faster.

3. Guruvayur - Ponnani - Tirurangadi - Kozhikode (Just picked this off Google. Is there a better alternative?)

Don't take this route. Instead go via Kunnamkulam-Edappal-Kuttippuram- Ramanattukara (and may Calicut byepass if your destination isn't the southern part of Calicut). Much better road surface on this route.

4. Kozhikode - Sulthan Bathery - Mysore - Bangalore

Would suggest skipping Mysore and going via Gundlupet-Chamarajnagar - Kollegal- Malavalli-Kanakapura-Bangalore. Better roads and less traffic.

[Rajeevraj]

Originally Posted by pvkm

Plan to take the following route in a few days. Would greatly appreciate a sitrep on current conditions or suggestions on alternate routes. I'm traveling with family and avoid night driving. Thanks!

1. Bangalore - Kanakapura - Sathyamangalam - Palakkad. (My first time on this route. I normally take the Hosur - Krishnagiri - Salem route but want to try an alternate.)

3. Guruvayur - Ponnani - Tirurangadi - Kozhikode (Just picked this off Google. Is there a better alternative?)

4. Kozhikode - Sulthan Bathery - Mysore - Bangalore

1. Update as of 14th October: Condition between Bangalore and Chamrajnagar is very good.
Chamrajnagar to CBE should also be very good as per reports on this thread. Please note that this route is all 2 lane highways.

3. This routing does not make sense. I guess you meant Guruvayoor- Ponnani- Tirur - Kozhikode. Tirurangadi is a different town. This route is the shortest in terms of distance, but you may end up taking more time because of bad/narrow roads in some sections (between Ponnani and Tirur). The default Guruvayoor-Kozhikode route is: Guruvayoor-Kunnamkulam-Edappal-Kuttipuram (Bypass)- Valanchery- Changuvety- University- Kozhikode. Roads are very good. Traffic is very high.

4. Good roads. Lot of speed-breakers in the forest area. In case you want to avoid Mysore, you can deviate to Chamrajnagar from Gundlepet and join the CBE-Kanakpura-Bangalore Highway and get back the way you went.

Edit: Looks like I posted responded at the same time as Kala. Good thing is the recommendations are the same :-)

[binand]

Originally Posted by kala

go via Kunnamkulam-Edappal-Kuttippuram- Ramanattukara

There is now a road via Edappal-Chamravattom-Tirur-Parappanangadi-Chelari-Ramanattukara that is shorter by a few km, instead of the pure NH 17 route.

[tomchacks]

[quote=hvkumar;3270888]That cramps the choices for those driving through the night to North Kerala further. Apart from the Hunsur-Virajpet-Kannur & the Palakkad-Perinthalmanna route, there does not appear to be any other route for those travelling from Bangalore/ Mysore to Kozhikode?

There is another option, though not directly to Kozhikode.

Travel by NH 209 and after Annur and before Coimbatore, and near to Saravanampatti turn west to join Coimb- Mettupalaym road and again turn west to reach Kanuvai or any point on the Coimbatore Anaikatti road. This road enters Kerala after Anaikatti, proceeds through the Attapadi region, then Mukkali (gateway to Silent Valley Park) and reaches Mannarkadu (close to Perunthalmanna)on the Palghat Kozhikode highway.

I had travelled along this road in April 2013 to avoid the Coimbatore-Mannuthy stretch on NH 47, on my way back to Kochi. The road conditions deserve improvement with many bad pot hole sections but has also good sections. Two lane width is good enough. There are some hair pin bends and scenic portions too.

[kala]

Originally Posted by binand

There is now a road via Edappal-Chamravattom-Tirur-Parappanangadi-Chelari-Ramanattukara that is shorter by a few km, instead of the pure NH 17 route.

I tried that route a few months ago, but found that it takes longer. (I came form Ponnani side not from Edappal, and the Ponnani to Chamravattom stretch was bad, not sure about the Edappal Chamravattom road).

The road from Chamravattom bridge to Tirur was also not in the best of condition and though the road is pretty good from there on there was diversion of about 4-5 kms (through village roads) at a point where a railway overbridge was being built near Tanur. Also since the road passes right through the busy towns of Tirur, Tanur and Parappanagadi, it consumes quite a bit of time.

Overall traffic on this route is very much comparable to the one via Kuttippuram-Valanchery (Both routes have pretty dense traffic), so not sure if you'd gain much by taking the Tirur route.

[Mnjdnght]

Originally Posted by pvkm

1. Bangalore - Kanakapura - Sathyamangalam - Palakkad. (My first time on this route. I normally take the Hosur - Krishnagiri - Salem route but want to try an alternate.)

Good roads without too much traffic (except the Sathyamangalam - Annur stretch at times) and you'll save on toll. Like Kala says do turn off from Annur towards Karumathampathy to join NH47 towards Coimbatore which is now very much drivable.

Originally Posted by pvkm

2. Palakkad - Ottapalam - Wadakanchery - Guruvayur (Is there a better alternative?)

The most straight forward and your best route would be Palakkad - Ottapalam - Pattambi - Kunnamkulam - Guruvayoor. Good roads all the way except the bridge across Bharatapuzha at Pattambi. The bridge is ok but you may encounter some traffic around the area. Do check earlier posts in this thread on getting through Palakkad town without going through the market area which is quick chaotic.

[vinucv]

Wanted to give an update on my Chennai – Ettumanoor-Guruvayoor-Calicut-Chennai round trip over the last week

1- Chennai - Ettumanoor (http://goo.gl/maps/hRIzs)

Drive till Dindigul was smooth and from Dindigul to Theni, it was reasonable with a mix of 4 lane and 2 lane roads. Road from Kumili to Vandiperiyar was kind of good to bad with many potholes in between. Took a different route from Ponkunnam (please refer the link) and found it to be a good decision. Roads were excellent throughout with hardly any traffic

2. Ettumanoor - Guruvayoor (http://goo.gl/maps/Uw94V)

Mostly average roads with lot of potholes near Vytilla but I think it is a better option compared to Thrissur route.

3. Guruvayoor - Calicut (http://goo.gl/maps/TuUeq)

Decent roads with moderate to heavy traffic at few places. Looks to be the best option available now.

4. Calicut - Chennai (http://goo.gl/maps/hN8r6)

From Calicut, took the Cherppulasseri-Mundur route and roads were very bad upto Mundur. I was told it is the same case even if I had taken Mannarkkad route.

From Palakkad, took the pollachi route intending to go via Palladam. However, GPS directed me through a different route and managed to reach Karumathampatti through some narrow roads. Apart from this glitch, drive was comfortable till Chennai.

PS: Thanks for your patience to read this

[sandsun7]

Originally Posted by kala

The road from Chamravattom bridge to Tirur was also not in the best of condition and though the road is pretty good from there on there was diversion of about 4-5 kms (through village roads) at a point where a railway overbridge was being built near Tanur. Also since the road passes right through the busy towns of Tirur, Tanur and Parappanagadi, it consumes quite a bit of time.

Overall traffic on this route is very much comparable to the one via Kuttippuram-Valanchery (Both routes have pretty dense traffic), so not sure if you'd gain much by taking the Tirur route.

The railway overbridge construction (near devdar school) is almost over and traffic is now being allowed under it through the old road and no need to go via the diverted road. One still needs to cross the railway gate though. The bridge is expected to be open in a month or so.
Traffic on Chamravattom-BP angadi- Tirur - Tanur- Parappanangadi - Chettipadi is very high at any time of the day. Also, the roads are much narrower compared to the NH, so time taken would always be more, as Kala said. There is a railway gate little ahead after you take right towards chelari at Chettipadi town. Beyond chettipadi till Chelari/NH, traffic would be lesser and the road is in very good condition.

[johnda]

Need to travel from Thiruvalla to vellore in a week's time. What would be the best route in terms of good roads?
Options so far are
tvla - cochin - trissur - ottapalam - palghat - coimbatore - erode - salem - krishnagiri - vellore

tvla- kumliy - dindugal - salem - vellore

please give me suggestions and advice.