[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by pravdr

dear sidd can you tell me the exact name location/milestone of the restaurant at doodhi?when i travel indore bhopal is it located to left/right ?

regards

praveen

Its actualy called Dodi & dont worry you wont miss it, its big in area with a clear board, also you will find lots of cars parked as its a famous stopover

I am not too sure but I think its on left when you are coming from Indore.

Originally Posted by pravdr

technocrat thanks for the information.
i would also like to know about the bypasses at mhow and dewas town
in the map the indore bypass is very obvious. how do i tackle dewas is there a bypass which diverts you directly onto nh86 from nh3 at dewas?

regards

pg

I think both the bypass meet each other, in any case I think the sign boards would tell you this, in case of doubt just ask anyone, they also call it ring road. Also there are multiple sections from where you can join this bypass, right from Mhow till after Dewas, so even if you miss one you can join it on next section

You can also use this map for details on smaller cities in your trip

Distance & Path Finder

[Simple_car]

Would like to give an update of the road condition:

I drove to bhopal in january 2013. The route was divided in 2 stages, since I had some work in Indore.

1) Stage 1: Mumbai - Indore

Route: Mumbai - Nashik - Malegaon - Dhule - Nardana - Sendhwa - Indore
Time taken: 8 hours

- left home at 1 p.m.
- mumbai nashik expressway is good.
- nashik is a bottleneck; the flyover which bypasses the city was under construction.
- Post nashik till HAL factory, the road was narrow and under construction.
- After HAL factory, the road opened up and it was one smooth 4 laned, well marked piece of tarmac. Sparse traffic only made it more pleasurable
- Right upto Indore, no issues. I drove at constant 3 digit speeds.
- Even the once feared areas of Sendhwa are now relatively safe to travel at night. Would still advise against late night travel on this stretch (you never know).
- Reached indore around 8.30 p.m.



Stage 2: Indore - Bhopal

Route: Indore - Dewas - Ashta - Bhopal
Time taken: 3hours

- Took the Indore bypass road, only to realize that the concretization of this stretch wasn't over yet. By and large, it was a good road; but had quite a few diversions.
- You reach a toll towards your way to Dewas. Post the toll, the road was good in the beginning, and bad as dewas was approaching
- After you take a left for bhopal (just before entering dewas city), the road becomes smooth once again, but is 2 laned.
- The 2 laned road continues for few kms, post which you come to another toll.
- After the toll, enjoy a 4 lane, well marked, scenic (by M.P. standards), traffic free road till Bhopal city.
- Left from Indore at 11 a.m. and reached bhopal at 1 p.m.

All in all, a very memorable drive, made all the more pleasurable due to the sparse traffic.

Thanks,
Simple_car

P.S. Please note, this was 6 months back.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by Simple_car

- The 2 laned road continues for few kms, post which you come to another toll.
- After the toll, enjoy a 4 lane, well marked, scenic (by M.P. standards), traffic free road till Bhopal city.

Good to note about the 4-lane stretch. How far is the second toll from Dewas?
In other words what percentage of Dewas-Bhopal is 4-laned?

Good update on this section.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by ampere

Good to note about the 4-lane stretch. How far is the second toll from Dewas?
In other words what percentage of Dewas-Bhopal is 4-laned?

Good update on this section.

According to what Google Maps shows, its only Dewas bypass which is 2lane. This bypass takes you from the 4-lane NH3 onto the 4-lane NH86.

And according to the latest reports of the NHAI about 2kms of the Mumbai to Indore stretch is left as of now. I imagine this 2km is probably within Nasik city itself.

[bhavtol]

Originally Posted by ampere

Good to note about the 4-lane stretch. How far is the second toll from Dewas?
In other words what percentage of Dewas-Bhopal is 4-laned?

Good update on this section.

Dewas-Bhopal is entirely 4-laned with excellent road/views. Its the Dewas Bypass of 18 kms which is 2laned but of concrete. You pay toll for this road at the end of it and then jump on to Dewas-Bhopal 4 Lane for which you have the option of paying entire toll at the first toll plaza. So i guess the reply will be 100 percent.

Road from Indore to Dewas is being 6-laned as we speak and hence quite a few diversions but it will be complete in next 6-12 months making it something like the Dhule bypass with lots of flyovers.

Also driving in the night on this road is not a issue as it is 24 hours road with good traffic. I have always assumed that time factor on this highway matters cuz there is a very high percentage of local traffic going from Point A to B using the highway instead of the interior roads. Also the dairy/vegetables trucks going into Mumbai are rashly driven so as to maintain the strict timetable. Schedule one`s journey at appropriate time and you will find it empty all the time.

Originally Posted by julupani

According to what Google Maps shows, its only Dewas bypass which is 2lane. This bypass takes you from the 4-lane NH3 onto the 4-lane NH86.

And according to the latest reports of the NHAI about 2kms of the Mumbai to Indore stretch is left as of now. I imagine this 2km is probably within Nasik city itself.

Correct. the flyover will make you cross the entire Nasik city in a stretch. and once complete i guess it will reduce travel by more than 45 mins or so.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by bhavtol

Dewas-Bhopal is entirely 4-laned with excellent road/views. Its the Dewas Bypass of 18 kms which is 2laned but of concrete. You pay toll for this road at the end of it and then jump on to Dewas-Bhopal 4 Lane for which you have the option of paying entire toll at the first toll plaza. So i guess the reply will be 100 percent.

Thanks. Thats good to note. How about the Nagpur-Indore or Nagpur-Bhopal section (Betul/Hoshangabad/Harda) ? Any works happening in there ?

[bhavtol]

Originally Posted by ampere

Thanks. Thats good to note. How about the Nagpur-Indore or Nagpur-Bhopal section (Betul/Hoshangabad/Harda) ? Any works happening in there ?

There are two actually three ways to go to Nagpur from Indore.

[a. Indore - Bhopal- Hosgbd - Itarsi - Betul - Nagpur (541 Kms) ]- Indore-Bhopal - Excellent

Bhopal - Betul - Nagpur - Not good, Heavy traffic and due to lot of submerged " pullias " (small Bridges) this road remains open but disrupted. Also you wont find traffic in night.

[b. Indore - Harda - timrani - Betul - Nagpur (503 kms) ] - Bad Road Conditions , people say that this road has never been made completely after independence. If the section is complete than it can reduce the kms between Ahemdabad and Hyderbad to a great extent.

[c. Indore - Khandwa - Dharni - Paratwada - Amravati - Nagpur (511 kms) ] - A Drivers delite. This road passes throught Ghats of Khandwa via choral falls and is scenic. The Road from Khandwa to Paratwada via dharni has a 60 kms Ghat one would love to drive. Road from Paratwada to Amravati is good and from there its 4 laned till nagpur.

Choice is one`s to make.....

[rohan.xj]

hey guys, planning to undertake a road trip, Mumbai to Indore, in next few days. Has anyone traveled recently? Need inputs on road condition since my car has a low GC! Planning to start at about 4am in the morning so that i can reach Indore by lunch time.

[ApriliaNut]

Originally Posted by rohan.xj

hey guys, planning to undertake a road trip, Mumbai to Indore, in next few days. Has anyone traveled recently? Need inputs on road condition since my car has a low GC! Planning to start at about 4am in the morning so that i can reach Indore by lunch time.

@Rohan,
While visiting India recently, I drove from Bhopal to Mumbai couple of weeks ago and my 65 yrs "young" dad drove back & onwards to Mathura via Bhopal & Jhansi.

The road is an excellent 4-lane highway throughout (except for a couple of kms through a town where construction is ongoing, but is not a issue). You can easily maintain triple digit speeds all the way, outside of towns & ghats.
Nashik Flyover is open and it takes about 10 minutes(or maybe less) to cross Nashik.
You car should be fine as there were no potholes or uneven road surface that I can remember. But I encountered 3-4 speedbreakers in some towns on the highway.
On Indore bypass, all road crossings are getting a flyover, so most of the bypass travel is on diverions, but again not a issue as the diversion paths are wide enough and well tarred.

Overall, it should take you about 9 hrs, including short breaks.
Please post an update of the road conditions when you do the trip.

[bhavtol]

Originally Posted by rohan.xj

hey guys, planning to undertake a road trip, Mumbai to Indore, in next few days. Has anyone traveled recently? Need inputs on road condition since my car has a low GC! Planning to start at about 4am in the morning so that i can reach Indore by lunch time.

Volvo Bus from Bhopal to Mumbai Starts at 5.30 pm and reaches Borivali by 8.30 Am. The Road is excellent 24x7 all weather and nicely tared road throughout. All amenities like Petrol/Gas/Diesel and Fooding/Lodging are available throughout the road. 15 days ago i covered Indore-Mumbai in 8 hrs in a Tata Safari

[rammishra]

Originally Posted by bhavtol

Volvo Bus from Bhopal to Mumbai Starts at 5.30 pm and reaches Borivali by 8.30 Am. The Road is excellent 24x7 all weather and nicely tared road throughout. All amenities like Petrol/Gas/Diesel and Fooding/Lodging are available throughout the road. 15 days ago i covered Indore-Mumbai in 8 hrs in a Tata Safari

Hi,

The road is divided 4 lane in excellent condition with nothing much to worry. Just keep a watch for local tarffic on wrong side specially between Shahpur and nashik, nashik Dhule and Dhule shirpur.

I have done this route quite a few times in alto and Vista, I ahve reached Bhopal in 14 Hours with adequate stops. If you start at 4 AM should reach indore in maximum 10 Hours.

[rohan.xj]

Originally Posted by ApriliaNut

@Rohan,
While visiting India recently, I drove from Bhopal to Mumbai couple of weeks ago and my 65 yrs "young" dad drove back & onwards to Mathura via Bhopal & Jhansi.
==========
Please post an update of the road conditions when you do the trip.

Undertook the proposed road trip from 27th Dec to 2nd January 2014.

The road conditions are just perfect for a road trip! Door to door trip (from Powai to Indore) was 595 km and completed in about 17 hours (return trip) including pit stops for food and petrol. Patches of road were under construction on the Indore bypass (in case some one is planning Mumbai to Agra trip)!

Originally Posted by bhavtol

Volvo Bus from Bhopal to Mumbai Starts at 5.30 pm and reaches Borivali by 8.30 Am. The Road is excellent 24x7 all weather and nicely tared road throughout. All amenities like Petrol/Gas/Diesel and Fooding/Lodging are available throughout the road. 15 days ago i covered Indore-Mumbai in 8 hrs in a Tata Safari

However, I felt that road reflectors/turn signs were not adequate for high speed night time driving and the toll operators should do something about it. Day driving is absolutely comfortable with ample fuel pumps and roadside eateries.

[Peripatetic]

Hello Everyone,

Very Informative inputs.

I am planning a road trip from Mumbai(I live here) to Gwalior(my hometown) in the 2nd week of April 2014. I would be driving my Honda City S VTEC 2011 and would be accompanied by my wife and 2 daughters (12 & 6 yrs old).

My Driving Experience :
Been driving since i was in 10th standard , 1st experiences were on my Dad's Fiat premier padmini ,did some Jhansi-Gwalior highway driving with my dad in this car. did some Gwalior -Agra , Gwalior-Jhansi when we had a Maruti 800 as well.
Dad got transferred to Nanded (Maharashtra) when I was in college . did a Nanded -Indore-Ujjain- Gwalior- Bhopal-Nanded return road trip in 1996 (Diwali Vacations) in a Maruti 800. One of most Memorable trips of my life.
Got a job in Delhi after college , used to do Delhi - Gwalior return road trips almost 6-7 times a year in my Maruti Zen LXI. I have actually seen the highway slowly developing into what it is today.
Now , after moving to Mumbai 8 years back , I have done the usual Mumbai-Shirdi , Mumbai-Pune-Mahabaleshwar , Mumbai-Murud,Kashid ,Daman etc. a number of times.

(I just realised that Iam actually not getting to the point here , extremely sorry for that but its one of my very first forum posts)

Current Dilemma
During my extensive search on Team BHP , I was able to gather that Mumbai - Nashik-Dhule-Indore is pretty good , I am also Thankful to 'bhavtol' for the most recent update on this route. I am unable to find any recent Inputs on Indore-Gwalior route and would really appreciate any pointers/suggestions , I also need further help on the return trip . my tentative plan is as under

Trip dates :5th April to 15th April

Day 1 : Mumbai-INdore-Ujjain (Mahakal Darshan)
Day 2 : Ujjain -Shivpuri - Gwalior.
Day 3-8 : Stay at Gwalior
Day 8: Gwalior -Agra -Kota -Udaipur
Day 9: Udaipur -Mumbai
Day 10: Buffer
I am not very sure if I can manage time/itinerary on Day 8 and Day 9 , If it is going to take more time than above ,I will retrace my Day 1-2 itinerary for my return journey.

Many Thanks in advance for your time and efforts to enlighten me on the above.

With Very Best Regards ,
Peripatetic

[naman07]

Bioara to Gwalior the road is in very pathetic condition. It is is ridden with deep potholes and certain stretches have no road also.

I did Noida to Bhopal in Dec-2013 in Tata Safari. It took me 4.5 hours to reach Gwalior from Noida covering a distance of 400 km. Whereas post Gwalior it took me 8 hours to reach Bhopal covering a distance of nearly 350 km.

The recent rains might have made the road conditions more worse. Also, this a single carriage highway with a lot of truck traffic during the day time. I would not even think of travelling during night on this stretch.

In Honda City, you will have to be extra careful to prevent the bottom from scrapping. Also, there is no decent place post Bioara till Gwalior to stop for eating or loo.

[Peripatetic]

@Naman , thank you very much for your valuable inputs , do you have an idea of an alternate route ? , I was thinking of Mumbai-Vadodara-Ahmedabad-Udaipur-Jaipur-Agra-Gwalior .