[TorquePull]

Originally Posted by Sensible_Speed

I use that road regularly to go to Pollachi. That stretch causes me a lot of anxiety, especially in the night time. The road is a narrow two lane, with a 5-6 feet drop on either side. Driving on it, by itself is a great challenge. Now, with reports of attacks happening on it, I may have to take the Coimbatore exit on the 6 lane road and work my way back, across the bypass. The tolls there seem unnecessary and only cause long traffic pile-ups that take hours to clear. I'd suggest taking that route only in the afternoons, when it is relatively free.

It is an one off incident. This road is overcrowded and causes many drivers to drive rashly, but crime like this is never heard before.

If you want, while coming from Salem, you could take left at Karumathampatti towards Somanur, Karanampettai, Karadivavi, Kamanaickenpalayam and enter Palladam-Pollachi road. You could skip two toll booth and will only take about 10 minutes extra, can save some time during peak hours as the L&T bypass can get really crowded.

[binand]

Originally Posted by TorquePull

It is an one off incident.

Actually - there have been highway robbery incidents reported on that stretch in the past too. Not very frequent (unlike the Coorg route to Kerala), but not ignorable either. Couple of examples:

https://www.aninews.in/news/national...1081246550001/

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities...le24101766.ece

[TorquePull]

Originally Posted by binand

Actually - there have been highway robbery incidents reported on that stretch in the past too. Not very frequent (unlike the Coorg route to Kerala), but not ignorable either. Couple of examples:

https://www.aninews.in/news/national...1081246550001/

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities...le24101766.ece

KG chavady is not on L&T bypass. It is on the Coimbatore-Palakkad highway, close to the border.

There have been incidents reported on this stretch targeting vehicles carrying Hawala cash into Kerala. They are probably trying to do this before entering Kerala border.

[binand]

Originally Posted by TorquePull

KG chavady is not on L&T bypass. It is on the Coimbatore-Palakkad highway, close to the border.

Yes that's true. That nuance was lost on me. I was commenting on robberies along the larger Coimbatore-Walayar route.

[MoonShot]

I encountered a similar incident today. I was travelling with my wife and infant from Bangalore to Kochi. We had stopped for refreshments at A2B in Ariyannur and headed out by 7:45 PM. Immediately after, we stopped for petrol at an Indian oil pump. Post which we would have crossed a couple of flyovers when all of a sudden a car in front of us slowed down and as I tried to overtake it, it continued to block me and a person inside signalled me to move my car to the side. Initially I thought it was an incident of road rage but quickly remembered the highway robbery news I had read on TBHP.

I did not stop and quickly turned and accelerated forward. Drove really fast until the next toll.

The road was poorly lit in those areas and had some lorry traffic only. Luckily we lived to tell the tale - With an infant, I spine chillingly wonder what could have happened.

Lesson learned -
1. Avoid the Salem-Kochi highway at night as much as possible.
2. Get a dashcam as soon as possible
3. While driving through shady areas, never stop for food or filling gas. I believe we may have been spotted there

[manjubp]

Only question, why the police are not informed officially?
Without formally complaining with registration number of the vehicle, how this is going to solve?

How can everyone can avoid travelling at night, for ever?

[MoonShot]

Originally Posted by manjubp

Only question, why the police are not informed officially?
Without formally complaining with registration number of the vehicle, how this is going to solve?

How can everyone can avoid travelling at night, for ever?

Unfortunately we did not have a dashcam and in the confusion of the chaos, we couldn’t note down the cars number as well.

Otherwise, the right approach to take is to file a police complaint.

I am in the process of getting a dashcam installed for future safety.

[Aviator_guy]

Originally Posted by MoonShot

Lesson learned -
1. Avoid the Salem-Kochi highway at night as much as possible.

I find TN highways quite safe and have driven in night many times including this particular stretch. Hope these are isolated incidents and authorities take action soon.