[subbaraomr]

Recommend Amravati on NH16 on left going towards vijayawada. Good parking, toilets clean and food is good. They have posted signage so you will not miss it.

[mashmash]

Thank You so much. This was the first time I was doing this route and man, it was tiring compared to the Hyderabad route. I need to check my map, however, the stretch from Chitoor to Nellore was full of diversions and in between google took me through really narrow village roads. Nellore onwards till Vijayawada road was excellent. However, once past Vijayawada the GQ was not in great shape especially approaching Rajmundry, Annawaram, etc. It looked like they were laying road in sections. This was my fifth drive to Vizag and the most tiring one.

I will stick to the Hyderabad route till the road work is complete.

MaSh

[Paraag]

Originally Posted by mashmash

Nellore onwards till Vijayawada road was excellent. However, once past Vijayawada the GQ was not in great shape especially approaching Rajmundry, Annawaram, etc. It looked like they were laying road in sections. This was my fifth drive to Vizag and the most tiring one.MaSh

Agree with these observations. Did Bangalore to Cuttack via Palamner-Chittoor-Tirupati-Naidupeta-Nellore route on 21 Dec. Started 11 am and reached Cuttack next day at 4 pm for a total of about 29 hours. Will use the Tirupati route again after a year or a couple of years once the road widening has been completed. Vijayawada to Vizag is not a very good drive because the road surface is eroded causing you to drive through mini potholes; although not bad enough to wreck your car, one doesn't enjoy the bumpy ride. All through Andhra, especially during the day one needs to stay around 50 - 65 because no sooner you speed up and shift into 5th, you encounter a barricade every 500 meters or so. No point in accelerating. Better to drive very sedately and conserve your fuel and engine. You aren't going to save much in terms of time even if you drive at night.


Vijayawada up to Cuttack, there are no dedicated Fastag lanes although Lane 2 in Andhra is marked for Fastag. You have to queue up behind other non-Fastag vehicles. The only time that you save is not having to pay manually with toll being deducted through handheld scanners or the ones fixed at the toll gate where they ask you to inch up to a particular spot so that the scanner can read the tag.



Starting from Bangalore, refueled at Indian Oil (24 hours) fuel bunk at Benz Circle in Vijayawada. Got stuck up in a traffic jam even after 11:30 pm - just my luck maybe? Haven't tanked up again since reaching Cuttack - Will refuel when starting on 2 Jan for return journey. MID shows efficiency of 27.6 for a distance of about 1470 km. Will calculate actual efficiency (km/volume) after reaching Bangalore on 3rd and update. Will be returning via Hyderabad route. Although longer, will be peaceful drive from Vijayawada to Hyderabad.

[kayvwar]

Did Bangalore to Vijayawada on 26th December and Vijayawada to Bangalore on 29th December. As mentioned by many in this thread, road from Kolar to Tirupati is in pretty bad shape. You are greeted by innumerable "Work in progress take diversion" boards. In many of these places the temporary roads are non existent. Needless to say, the innovative speed breakers. You can neither spot them nor can you ignore them. Google maps has this bad habit of rerouting you to roads that are little scary. All this for the sake of few minutes difference. This is the second time it has happened to me. After crossing Tirupati it puts you across to Venkatagiri route which is desolate and full of speed breakers. I did not fall for the trap this time around.

Some of the pit stops that we felt were ok (mainly for bio breaks for elderly):
1. Vegetarea or Empire, Narasapure. After Kolar
2. Apollo Hospital Nellore (yes, you read that right. I had to drive to this hospital for bio break)
3. N5, Tangutur
4. Coffee Day, Manubolu (Near Gudur)
5. HP Filling station or Araku Coffee (Murakambhattu, Near Chittoor)

I was flagged down for over speeding at Mocherla Village (39 Kms from Tanguturu Tool Plaza).
Speed limit is 80 Kmph, I was at 92 Kmph.
Paid 400 INR and received the challan. There were lot many people in the queue along with me. So please look out in this stretch.

When I took a right at Murakambattu (close to Chittoor) and was heading towards Bangarupalem route, map suggested taking Ambur Vaniyampadi, Krishnagiri, Hosur route. Given how bad the roads are, is that a better route to take to save time and control blood pressure.

[damodar]

Originally Posted by kayvwar

When I took a right at Murakambattu (close to Chittoor) and was heading towards Bangarupalem route, map suggested taking Ambur Vaniyampadi, Krishnagiri, Hosur route. Given how bad the roads are, is that a better route to take to save time and control blood pressure.

You can take the route via punganur-kallur-putalpattu as this is a traffic free stretch. The flip side is it's also a bit desolate at some places and you will encounter innumerable unmarked speed breakers. But I am used to all of this as I am doing this stretch once in a month since August 2018.
Once you are aware of the entire route it's quite a pleasant journey. I do Hebbal to Tirupati in 4hr and 30 min easily without getting tired.
Go through this earlier post of mine https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route...ml#post4443271 (Bangalore to Tirupati : Route Queries)

[ashis89]

I returned to Hyderabad on 30th Dec. Some more updates from my end:

I started from Bhubaneswar around 10am, driving solo. Traffic throughout and numerous diversions meant the progress was slow. Reached Vizag by 4:30pm with one small break of 20 mins. Even though Google Maps insisted for Vizag bypass, I took the highway through the city. Big mistake as it I could exit the Vizag periphery by 6:15PM.

Roads after Vizag were not smooth till Rajahmundry and the drive was tiring to say the least. Reached Rajahmundry by 9PM and checked into Hotel Suriya. Decent place with some parking space available at a reasonable price. It is about 3kms from the highway.

Started from the hotel around 9am and took the NH-16. The first 100 kms were a nightmare to say the least. Reached Vijaywada and crossed it by 1pm and reached Hyderabad by 5pm. Total 2 breaks of 15 mins each taken during the day.

[Paraag]

Update on Bangalore - Cuttack - Banglore trip:
21 Dec: With a full tank of diesel, started from home near Dommasandra on at 11 am. Google maps routed me via Bagalur-Malur Road towards Mulbagal. After reaching Mulbagal, Google maps was routing me through a non-toll road. Was using an older phone for pairing through Android Auto and realized the setting was without tolls. Thus lost nearly an hour in reaching Mulbagal. Switched to my newer phone. I think Google maps then took me via Punganur Pakala route to Tirupati. Took a break at Southern Spice on Tirupati bypass road for about 30 minutes. Restaurant was closed, so just was able to use their clean washrooms. Fed our pet and walked her about. Then set course for Naidupeta to reach NH16. Reached N5 at Turangatur toll plaza around 9 pm. Washrooms were not so clean and a bit smelly. Wanted tea but it was just the tea-bag variety and not stove brewed. So skipped having anything there. Ate home-packed bread-butter. Reached Vijayawada just after midnight and was stuck in traffic before Benz circle. Filled up at a 24-hr IOC bunk, a little over 25 L. Road from Vijayawada to Rajahmundry not great with a lot of broken tarmac. Ride not pleasant at all and can't hope to maintain good speed. At Rajahmundry, Google maps diverted towards Tanaku Road and takes you via Doleswaram barrage. Didn't argue with Maps and followed it. Just before the barrage, felt sleep was too overpowering. So halted somewhere before the barrage, don't know exactly where, and dozed off for about 30 minutes. Felt refreshed and continued on and rejoined NH16 before Doleswaram Industrial Estate. Towards Vizag too, tarmac was not smooth and could not maintain good speed. Around 5 pm, wife woke up and she took over until Vizag City Railway station, around 7:30 am. Again took over until Srikakulam and then wife took over again until before Khurda in Odisha and I slept off in the back seat. From there, took over until we reached home in Cuttack at 4:15 pm, 22 Dec. Distance covered was 1495 km in 29 hours with breaks on trip meter A (which included about 12 km in Bangalore the previous day from fuel bunk to home). Did not fuel up after reaching Cuttack and the car was standing in the garage for about 10 days. MID showed a mileage of 27.6 kmpl. Tolls 1441.



2 Jan: Had originally planned to start on 1 Jan but delayed by a day to avoid potential queues at toll plazas with people returning on 1 Jan. Reset trip meter B and Started from Cuttack at 12:30 pm. Filled up Khan Nagar IOC bunk, a little over 30 L. Took NH16 and drove on towards Vizag with plan to pass through city and not take the bypass. Had a small break for our pet at around 4:30 pm along the highway. Reached Vizag around 8:30 pm. Decided to again fill up at a BPCL bunk and took in a little over 15 L. Drove further towards Port Road and took a short break for snacks and tea. Did not encounter much traffic in Vizag and went along NH16. Again Maps directed towards Doleswaram barrage to avoid road closures on NH16. Don't know if tarmac has been relaid or repair work had been done in the interim 10 days, but the tarmac from Rajahmundry to Vijayawada was much smoother compared with the other direction although still broken at some places. Took Vijayawada bypass onto Vijaywada-Hyderabad highway at around 4 am. After passing Suryapet felt sleep overpowering, so parked off the highway and slept off for about 45 minutes. Then driving on, took exit towards the Outer Ring Road which took me to Pedda Golconda on NH44 Hyd-Blr highway. Reached Hotel Ashiana on the highway at 9:45 am. After a small break and some tea (snacks were not ready yet) drove on towards Bangalore. Before Gooty, decided to take on enough fuel to reach home, about 14 L, and finally reached home at 6:30 pm. Had planned on refueling on reaching home, but skipped that as the car is due for service this weekend. Still about 150 km range remaining on the MID with about 2 points remaining on the fuel gauge. About 1695 km covered on return journey in 30 hours with breaks. Tolls paid including Hyderabad ORR toll 1781.
Total about 3195 km covered. Final fuel efficiency for whole trip indicated 28.3 on the MID. That indicates about 113 L of diesel consumed for the entire trip.

[Paraag]

Originally Posted by ashis89

Started from the hotel around 9am and took the NH-16.

What route did Google Maps show you through Rajahmundry? It showed via Doleswaram bridge both ways at night time on my recent trip.

[mashmash]

Originally Posted by mashmash

Thank You so much. This was the first time I was doing this route and man, it was tiring compared to the Hyderabad route. I need to check my map, however, the stretch from Chitoor to Nellore was full of diversions and in between google took me through really narrow village roads. Nellore onwards till Vijayawada road was excellent. However, once past Vijayawada the GQ was not in great shape especially approaching Rajmundry, Annawaram, etc. It looked like they were laying road in sections. This was my fifth drive to Vizag and the most tiring one.

I will stick to the Hyderabad route till the road work is complete.

MaSh

Alright now back in Bangalore and yes I took my usual Hyderabad route. What I noticed was that this side of the Stretch around Rajahmundry, Annawaram was much better. There were far lesser potholes and bad surfaces. It was a breeze bypassing Vijayawada around 7:30am in the morning. Refueled after exiting Vijayawada at a Reliance pump(I tend to stick to Essar/Reliance/Shell) which did not have a nozzle that could be set to Auto Cutoff. Apparently its meant for Trucks, is what I was told. Don't trucks need Auto Cutoff? It did fill up 40ltrs extremely quickly. The rest of the drive till Bangalore was smooth sailing except for a small stretch being relaid soon after Hyderabad.

Two funny observations.
1. Cops in Vijayawada trying their level best to control traffic, however, people hell bent on breaking rules and not listening to the cops. For a change I felt bad for the traffic cops in Vijayawada.

2. Numerous Brand New vehicles carrying religious people(Black/Red clothed). What was funny was, they would drive at 40-60km/h on the right most lane and would not move over even if they see a faster car coming up behind. The drivers would even give hand signs that they will not move over. An MH registered BMW almost ran into one such vehicle. Maybe the driver thought that the overloaded SUV would move over, which it did not.

MaSh

[vnabhi]

Folks for Orissa, can any of you provide inputs on the below route query:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route...-rourkela.html (Need road inputs from Bhadrachalam to Koraput to Rourkela)

I started that thread on behalf of a school buddy from Bangalore who wants to drive to Bhutan, but drive across some roads in Orissa that are less traveled.

Thanks in advance.

[Judemayne]

Driving from Bengaluru to Bhubaneswar and will be following the Mulbagal-Tirupati-Nellore route (which reading the above thread appears to be is a state of disrepair but staying in Whitefield this is the shorter route).
Please inform how is the road from Eluru to Rajahmundry via SH 204 across the Dowleswaram Barrage? Or should I follow NH 16?
A place to Stay in the close proximity to NH 16 at Rajahmundry?

[Sandy28]

Originally Posted by Judemayne

Driving from Bengaluru to Bhubaneswar and will be following the Mulbagal-Tirupati-Nellore route (which reading the above thread appears to be is a state of disrepair but staying in Whitefield this is the shorter route).
Please inform how is the road from Eluru to Rajahmundry via SH 204 across the Dowleswaram Barrage? Or should I follow NH 16?
A place to Stay in the close proximity to NH 16 at Rajahmundry?

Mulbagal - Tirupati route will slow you down due to the bad road. But once you hit the Chennai highway, it's a breeze all the way till Bhubaneshwar. I will suggest to stick to NH16 instead of taking SH 204. Though slightly longer, it's a super road and you can cruise at high speed

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by Judemayne

Please inform how is the road from Eluru to Rajahmundry via SH 204 across the Dowleswaram Barrage? Or should I follow NH 16?
A place to Stay in the close proximity to NH 16 at Rajahmundry?

I stuck to the NH16 but the road was okayish. For the stay in Rajahnmundry, you can choose between Hotel Anand Regency and Hotel Surya. Both are located in the same area and are about 3 kms from the NH16. They are decent and the only options that I have found near the highway till date.

Edit: Anand Regency is better that Surya but is also more expensive. At Surya, please request for parking as the basement parking has space for 2-3 cars only. Anand Regency has lot of parking space inside its campus.

[rajendra2278]

Originally Posted by livetodrive

I followed Vijaywada - Eluru - Nallajerla -Rajamuhndry route which reduced the distance between Rajamuhndry and Vijaywada by 40 to 50 KMs. Crossed Godavari 4th bridge to take this route while driving back from Vizag. Truck traffic is heavy and road condition is slightly bad near Rajamuhndry.

I think we can reduce a distance of max 30 kms, not 40-50 kms.
I too agree about the heavy truck traffic. It is also very difficult to overtake most of the times, because of continuous flow of vehicles in the opposite direction. I took this route yesterday, on my way back, from Vizag to Hyd. Crossed Godavari 4th bridge around 3:30pm, and joined back NH-16 around 5pm. This 1.5 hrs, I felt like I was driving in a city (minus signals), rather than a highway.
I felt that road condition is bad in stretches, all along this route.

My reason for taking this route is - Saving 30 odd kms+skipping a toll plaza (Unguturu).. But, incidentally, there is a toll plaza just after Godavari 4th bridge, which I didn't know.

My final opinion:
If travelling during day time, heavy truck traffic+bad road condition+difficulty in overtaking will easily negate the 30 odd kms time that we think we'll save.
Not sure about night drive in this route, but, any day, I would take a divided road for a night drive, rather than an undivided road.

[rahul4640]

I took a Calcutta-Vizag-Vijaywada-Hyderabad drive last month, I being the solo driver. Followed the route suggested by Google Map, with an overnight stop at Vizag on either direction. The roads were more or less OK, with some construction activities going on on near eastern side of Vizag.

Really enjoyed the Hyderbad-Vijaywada stretch, with very smooth surface and minimum traffic. No idea whether the traffic was low that time.