[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by kippu

thanks ranjitp1 , if it is only 20 km of bad stretch then I shall drive down ,

will have to stay at pune and then drive down to mumbai ., Will go through the alternate route, any other things to keep in mind on that route?

20km is bad,just gravel,so do not attempt to do that section late evening.The 20kms would most definitely take an hour or slightly more to get across.

[kippu]

thanks for that tip,

I will be leaving early morning from hyderabad , so I should be crossing that stretch in the afternoon , all fingers crossed

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by kippu

thanks for that tip,

I will be leaving early morning from hyderabad , so I should be crossing that stretch in the afternoon , all fingers crossed

Best is to take the ORR and take the Vikarabad Exit and go via APPA.Leaving very early morning,you would/might run into fog and visibility problems.So bear that in mind

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by kippu

I will be leaving early morning from hyderabad , so I should be crossing that stretch in the afternoon , all fingers crossed

When are you driving to Pune/Mumbai?

I will in most probability will be driving to Lonavala on Dec 22nd, if your doing this trip before mine, do share a detailed road condition update here so it will help me plan accordingly.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by mobike008

When are you driving to Pune/Mumbai?

I will in most probability will be driving to Lonavala on Dec 22nd, if your doing this trip before mine, do share a detailed road condition update here so it will help me plan accordingly.

Please speak to Zen91. He drove to Shirdi a couple of weeks back, and had horror stories to tell about both routes.

[kippu]

Originally Posted by mobike008

When are you driving to Pune/Mumbai?

I will in most probability will be driving to Lonavala on Dec 22nd, if your doing this trip before mine, do share a detailed road condition update here so it will help me plan accordingly.

avi , i am leaving on 23rd , so i look forward to seeing your post on 22nd evening , even a sms will work real fine ,
if gulbarga to akkalkot is the problem , maybe going from the other side maybe okay?

[zen91]

You could take this detour to bypass the bad stretch before Humnabad while on your way to Pune from Hyderabad. After Zaheerabad, proceed to Bidar and then to Humnabad. From Humnabad continue on NH9 to reach Pune. This detour is 30kms longer than the regular Zaheerabad-Humnabad road but it is worth it.

Solapur and beyond is very good expressway quality roads with a few bottlenecks like Shetfal railway gate crossing and Tembhurni town.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by zen91

You could take this detour to bypass the bad stretch before Humnabad while on your way to Pune from Hyderabad. After Zaheerabad, proceed to Bidar and then to Humnabad. From Humnabad continue on NH9 to reach Pune. This detour is 30kms longer than the regular Zaheerabad-Humnabad road but it is worth it.

Even if one takes this detour via Bidar, I was told that the stretch from Zaheerabad to Sangareddy is bad, though not as horrible as the one from Homnabad to Zaheerabad.

Wont it be better to take the approx 140 km longer route via Gulbarga, Bijapur and Athni? I think bhpian ravveenddra took that route on his return from Mumbai.

[zen91]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Even if one takes this detour via Bidar, I was told that the stretch from Zaheerabad to Sangareddy is bad, though not as horrible as the one from Homnabad to Zaheerabad.

Wont it be better to take the approx 140 km longer route via Gulbarga, Bijapur and Athni? I think bhpian ravveenddra took that route on his return from Mumbai.

Venu Sir, Sangareddy to Zaheerabad is bad but doable during day as the entire stretch is not riddled with potholes. The XXL size potholes/craters appear suddenly and one needs to slow down to crawling speed to negotiate them. Zaheerabad to Humnabad, specially 20kms before Humnabad is a continuous stretch of horrible road or no road I would say.

Hyderabad-Bijapur-Solapur is approximately 140 kms more than the regular route. For somebody new on this route, it might take 3-4 hrs of extra travel time. This depends on the schedule and the timelines to reach the destination. I have traveled just 120 kms , until Kodangal on this section, therefore will not be able to value add completely.

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Even if one takes this detour via Bidar, I was told that the stretch from Zaheerabad to Sangareddy is bad, though not as horrible as the one from Homnabad to Zaheerabad.

Wont it be better to take the approx 140 km longer route via Gulbarga, Bijapur and Athni? I think bhpian ravveenddra took that route on his return from Mumbai.

NH9 is bad between Patancheru and Solapur-Period.

The thumb rule should be:Any road that bypasses the NH9 fully must be acceptable

Option 1: Bijapur:Very long detour and time consuming between Satara and Pune due to bad traffic and road widening.

Option 2: Akkalkot:Good roads,but 20kms of misery between Sarasamba and Akkalkot.1hr is normal time to cover this stretch,but it is just pure unadulterated gravel.

Option 3:Zaheerabad-Bidar-Homnabad but back to NH9.

Option 4: Do a never ending drive to Solapur via some valleys and mountains called as roads.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by zen91

You could take this detour to bypass the bad stretch before Humnabad while on your way to Pune from Hyderabad. After Zaheerabad, proceed to Bidar and then to Humnabad. From Humnabad continue on NH9 to reach Pune. This detour is 30kms longer than the regular Zaheerabad-Humnabad road but it is worth it.

Brajesh Bhai, as discussed this morning. Iam going to stick to Hyd-Zaheerabad-Bidar-Humnabad-Solapur-Pune. Lets see how it pans out

[kippu]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Brajesh Bhai, as discussed this morning. Iam going to stick to Hyd-Zaheerabad-Bidar-Humnabad-Solapur-Pune. Lets see how it pans out

i am messaging my number to you , kindly do let me know after your travel is done thanks

[amoghchaphalkar]

Any updates on the condition of NH9? A friend tells me he traveled Hyd-Pune in a private bus and it took him 11 hours. Some 80 km stretch was bad. This was a couple of weeks back.

[gajadonga]

Originally Posted by amoghchaphalkar

Any updates on the condition of NH9? A friend tells me he traveled Hyd-Pune in a private bus and it took him 11 hours. Some 80 km stretch was bad. This was a couple of weeks back.

Traveled from Hyderabad to Zaherabad 100kms from Hyderabad last week.
Took the ORR upto Patancheru.
The roads upto Sadashivpet is quite ok.From here to Zaheerabad is very
average with quite a few potholed roads and lots of two wheeler traffic.
It took 2.30hrs from Hyderabad.
Beyond Zaherabad the roads status is bad in the forum.
Ideally Solapur - Hyderabad NH9 is avoidable. Plan for another route suggested
in this thread.

[sschivate]

I completed a Pune - Solapur - Pune drive over the last two days. The road condition is very good, just a few patches of 2-lane road remaining, not more than 5-7km. If you start early in the morning, it would take you 4.5-5 hours based on the break time. Be prepared to spend some 10-15 min at Modnimb, at railway level crossing. The railway line is not a busy one, but the road conditions are pathetic, making everyone crawl. As expected, the road from Manjari till Swargate was quite crowded, and it took me a long time in the morning commuter traffic (9:30am).
I would recommend Shree restaurant near Bhigwan for the break. It is on the left as you go from Pune to Solapur. Good food, quick service, clean toilets. I had heard a lot about Kanchan (near Yavat), but my experience was not that good. Very limited menu items available for breakfast, and service was s-l-o-w. I mean, I could see the bowls filled up for misaL on the counter, but I don't get one on my table!
I encountered Six toll plazas on the way till Solapur, and I had to shell out Rs 215 overall. The toll-booth experience was a lot better than Pune - Kolhapur stretch. No more than 3-4 vehicles in the line, and no one was cutting in.
Overall, a pleasant experience.