[arun_josie]

Originally Posted by varghesepaul

Hello Suresh: thanks for your reply and apologies for the confusion - I was asking if it was better to go to Trivandrum via Madurai, Nagercoil than going through Coimbatore Thrissur since I wanted to avoid the Kerala traffic. However, was not sure of the traffic and road conditions on the Madurai, Nagercoil route.

It is better to go through Nagercoil any day. Pain point would be the Nagercoil-Trivandrum stretch. What time are you planning to start?

You have lot of hotels before Salem. After Salem some good options are near Karur, Madurai bypass, Kayathar etc.

[varghesepaul]

Originally Posted by arun_josie

It is better to go through Nagercoil any day. Pain point would be the Nagercoil-Trivandrum stretch. What time are you planning to start?



You have lot of hotels before Salem. After Salem some good options are near Karur, Madurai bypass, Kayathar etc.

Hello Arun: thanks for your reply; was planning to start early morning around 3.30-4am from Bangalore. Is there any other route to avoid the Nagercoil -Trivandrum stretch?

[arun_josie]

Originally Posted by varghesepaul

Hello Arun: thanks for your reply; was planning to start early morning around 3.30-4am from Bangalore. Is there any other route to avoid the Nagercoil -Trivandrum stretch?

You can check the below post for the route to avoid Nagercoil.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3520719

And the below one to to avoid Nagercoil-Marthandam stretch,
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3520952

[arun_josie]

Update on Kavalkinaru - Nagercoil stretch.

The roads have been relaid and is butter smooth now. However it is still bad at 2-3 junctions.

1) Aralvaimozhi Jn
2) Thovalai Jn
3) Ozhuginasery - Its very bad here for about 30-50Mts

[Jaguar]

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Update on Kavalkinaru - Nagercoil stretch.

The roads have been relaid and is butter smooth now. However it is still bad at 2-3 junctions.

1) Aralvaimozhi Jn
2) Thovalai Jn
3) Ozhuginasery - Its very bad here for about 30-50Mts

I too took this stretch today and like Arun mentioned, most of the road is butter smooth, so much so that I was ripping and missed the turn to Bhootapandi and ended up at Nagercoil

Anyways, today was a bad day to travel with the whole of Bangalore out to travel. Took me 3 hours to reach Toppur A2B from Bangalore. Total travel time from Bangalore to Trivandrum was 13 hours of which more than one hour was spent at toll booths.

PS: Does anyone here drive a Lancer? We both took the turn off at Kavalkinaru at the same time and reassured each other if this was the correct turn to go to Trivandrum.

[sidharth_j]

Well, I tried this new route yesterday to avoid nagercoil on the drive back from Trivandrum, and it was absolutely horrible. This stretch is around 30 kms and there are no roads at all for 2/3rds of the way. There is a small 10 km stretch through some rubber estates which is good, but avoid this route like the plague -

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by sidharth_j

Well, I tried this new route yesterday to avoid nagercoil on the drive back from Trivandrum, and it was absolutely horrible. This stretch is around 30 kms and there are no roads at all for 2/3rds of the way. There is a small 10 km stretch through some rubber estates which is good, but avoid this route like the plague -

Did the same mistake last week. Avoid at all costs. Got off the 4 lane highway around 5:40pm and reached Trivandrum only by 9pm, mainly thanks to the pathetic road conditions.

The roads near Kulashekharam were fine and curled through rubber plantations, but the whole place felt so deserted.

[Freon911]

Did BLR - TVM and back during the holidays.

I had taken the route via Nagercoil town on the way to TVM. Since it was bad for some stretches, on the way back to BLR decided to try the new route via Kulasekharam and Boothapandi. Considerable length of this route has very bad roads and overall it was a bone rattling ride. The route through Nagercoil town is much better.There is also a section of this route which passes by the side of a canal, looks good on picture but can be quite an assault on our olfactory system.

One positive aspect of Kulasekharam route is less traffic and drive through scenic stretch between rubber plantations and also short ride with paddy fields on either side. I guess it would be a good route for bike.

Has anyone tried the route shown in picture? Please share your opinion on this route.

[arun_josie]

Originally Posted by Freon911

Has anyone tried the route shown in picture? Please share your opinion on this route.

During the last week of december I tried some part of the route mentioned by you and they are not in good condition except couple of stretches. Basically, I tried the below route which over laps with the one mentioned by you,
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3520719

Currently the best option is to take the Nagercoil route since most part of the Aralvaimozhi - Nagercoil stretch is in very good condition.

Also, when I was returning on Jan 3rd repair work on Ozhuginasery junction was going on. So, at least for next few months, we can expect the Nagercoil route to be in good condition.

[Jeep]

Drove from TVM to BLR last Sunday. Stuck to the straight fwd route from TVM-Nagercoil and to Aralvaimozhi. Trivandrum to Nagercoil is patchy, however, not very bad. Nagercoil- Aralvaimozhi is in good shape.

[arun_josie]

Finally the mega potholes near Ozhuginasery junction (Nagercoil entry) have been fixed with interlocking pavers. Hope this lasts for a long time.

Pic from facebook,

[hamster]

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Finally the mega potholes near Ozhuginasery junction (Nagercoil entry) have been fixed with interlocking pavers. Hope this lasts for a long time.
]

Interlocking pavers, really ?
Hope its not photoshopped

With the amount of interstate lorries and the Volvo Multi-Axles running in the stretch, not sure whether this is really a good idea.
Will it even be able to bear the weight in the longer run ?

Also, with three road junction, feel, it could be a recipe for disaster for two wheelers when it rains, especially with the gradient on all the three sides.

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Finally the mega potholes near Ozhuginasery junction (Nagercoil entry) have been fixed with interlocking pavers. Hope this lasts for a long time.

Pic from facebook,

Attachment 1353339

Wow. Can't tell what went into their minds to go ahead with such a topping. Only thing for us, is that it should last. If we are greeted with pot-holes after the next monsoon then its an utter waste of money and color.

[arun_josie]

Originally Posted by hamster

Interlocking pavers, really ?
Hope its not photoshopped

Not Photoshopped

Originally Posted by aneezan

Wow. Can't tell what went into their minds to go ahead with such a topping. Only thing for us, is that it should last. If we are greeted with pot-holes after the next monsoon then its an utter waste of money and color.

What I hear is that the life of this surface is more as it doesn't absorb water. Yes, we will have to wait and watch to see its reliability.

[kala]

Originally Posted by arun_josie

What I hear is that the life of this surface is more as it doesn't absorb water. Yes, we will have to wait and watch to see its reliability.

One or two hairpin bends on the Thamarassery ghats on NH212 have been surfaced with similar interlocks. Seems to be holding up pretty well (At least 2-3 years since they have been laid)