[aithalsandy]

Hello All,

Road is relaid from Birur to all the way till Shimoga (much needed), including the dreaded railway crossings at Birur.

But CR patna to Arsikere has developed irritable roughness.

Will update Shimoga - Agumbe soon.

[Harry Iyer]

Originally Posted by aithalsandy

Here is an update on Chitradurga route.

I drove this route on the the night of 22nd Dec 2017 and I can report that the conditions haven't changed at all. There was hardly any other vehicle on the road but still could average only around 45 kmph. The last 25 kms to Shimoga from Channagiri is very rough and woke up all the passengers.

Should have left the Bangalore-Pune highway much earlier and gone through Kadur instead.

Upadhya Veg is a decent stop with clean toilets but it closes by 10-11 pm.

[aithalsandy]

Hello All,

Update on Shimoga-Agumbe section.

Road from Shimoga till Mandagadde is under upgrade and is in full swing, Mandagadde to Agumbe is good.

Overall, 60% is good, 20% average, 20% under upgrade. Once the upgrade is complete, this would be one of the best drives in KA with relatively well behaved traffic (barring some crazy buses on Shimoga-MLR )

As per Contractor, everything will be done by the the end of 2018.

[aithalsandy]

Hello All,

Here is an update on Shimoga-Jog.

Shimoga to Sagar is awesome as usual, barring road updates near Shimoga. I did this during early hours, reflectors are good, however I rammed rumblers as signage/paint is missing in some of them making it difficult to spot even during the day time.

Sagar to Jog has deteriorated, with dust and gravel flying all over.

Jog to Gersoppa (including the ghat) has remained pathetic single road with massive gap between the road and mud.

Most of the traffic is well behaved, barring some errant dusters (no prize for guessing the number plates ).

My recommendation is to avoid the ghat if you have alternative route, while Sagar to Shimoga has remained bliss.

[aithalsandy]

Hello People,

Caution for people using CR Patna - Arsikere route. The roughness has developed into massive craters in 4/5 places. Pls maintain healthy speed as it's difficult to spot them from the distance.

Also, the new surface from Birur-Shimoga doesn't have any reflectors/paint making it painful to drive during dark hours with criminal-grade high beam behavior.

[deehunk]

I came back from a trip to Shimoga yesterday, took the Bangalore-Yediyur-Turuvekere-Tiptur-Arasikere-Kadur-Shimoga for the journey. The road from Yadiyur to Arasikere has been patched up, so road condition is better from what I saw in December. There is a lot of fresh tarmac up to Shivamogga, so roads are very good all the way up to Shivamogga.

[aithalsandy]

Finally, the best minister is pushing the project. Hopefully the Chitradurga-Shimoga-Thirthahalli under NH13 upgrade is completed before they start the NH206 upgrade

[Santoshbhat]

Need to travel to Shimoga in the coming week and I am getting confused with so many options available.

Google is suggesting an altogether new route which I have never come across. Bangalore - Tumkur - Hiriyur - Hosadurga - Ajjampur - Tarikere- Bhadrvathi - Shimoga.

The question is, how is the stretch from Hiriyur to Tarikere? As per google it's 101 kms and the suggested time is 2 hrs at an average of 50 kmph. Sounds decent. Anyone experienced this stretch first hand? I will be driving a low slung car with low profile tyres, hence the concern.

[deehunk]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

Need to travel to Shimoga in the coming week and I am getting confused with so many options available.

Hi Santosh, I would advise you to take the second option which I followed last month. There is no point in driving on NH48 to save few minutes. I have shared the best options here.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by deehunk

Hi Santosh, I would advise you to take the second option which I followed last month. There is no point in driving on NH48 to save few minutes. I have shared the best options here.

Thanks. Actually it's more like 45 mins to 1 hr that you save compared to the other options. Tumkur to Hiriyur is a beautiful six lane. In fact I have preferred going upto Chitrdurga in the past, but now Chitradurga to Shimoga seems to be quite slow due to possible road works going on.

I have traveled by the Chanrayapatna Arasikere route in the past and tended to prefer it until the Chanrayapatna Arasikere section started to deteriorate. This Hosadurga road joins at Tarikere, so one can avoid all the busy parts of the BH road. Let me see how things pan out. My programme is a bit tight so time factor is quite crucial for me. Will update this thread once I complete the trip.

[deehunk]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

My programme is a bit tight so time factor is quite crucial for me. Will update this thread once I complete the trip. : thumbs up

Thanks, Santosh, time of travel depends on when you search the route, it is a waste of time to travel until Channarayapatna to reach Arsikere. I prefer Turuvekere-Tiptur route because of good roads and very less traffic. An early morning start should take you 5.5 hours to reach Shivamogga, otherwise, it is usually 6 hours with a break.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

In fact I have preferred going upto Chitrdurga in the past, but now Chitradurga to Shimoga seems to be quite slow due to possible road works going on.

If you're starting early morning from Bangalore you can still try Chitradurga-Shimoga. Last I heard most of the road expansion work is complete, possibly worst stretch maybe the last 20km or so (see earlier posts). Tumkur-Arsikere may also be fine if you're starting early, this route is not great if returning late evening.
Based on earlier posts, I think your concern should be more about return route (if you're planning to return in the evening) since both Chitradurga and Arsikere options may be painful.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by NPV

If you're starting early morning from Bangalore you can still try Chitradurga-Shimoga. Last I heard most of the road expansion work is complete, possibly worst stretch maybe the last 20km or so (see earlier posts). Tumkur-Arsikere may also be fine if you're starting early, this route is not great if returning late evening.
Based on earlier posts, I think your concern should be more about return route (if you're planning to return in the evening) since both Chitradurga and Arsikere options may be painful.

I am starting early morning indeed, but not returning to Bangalore, instead proceeding to Belgaum from there.

As per google, Chitradurga - Shimoga avg speed is about 43 kmph whereas Hiriyur - Tarikere avg speed predicted is about 50 kpmph. So I am keen on trying that route. Of course a lot of time can be made up by driving upto Chitradurga. Apart from time I am also concerned about road surface as I will be driving a small hatch with less ground clearance and delicate tyres.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

As per google, Chitradurga - Shimoga avg speed is about 43 kmph whereas Hiriyur - Tarikere avg speed predicted is about 50 kpmph. So I am keen on trying that route. Of course a lot of time can be made up by driving upto Chitradurga. Apart from time I am also concerned about road surface as I will be driving a small hatch with less ground clearance and delicate tyres.

Tarikere-Hiriyur I dont think has improved in the recent times. I tried long back it was a bad 1-lane. Later I think @condor also mentioned it was wrecked. So if you happened to take it would be great to know the current condition.

The only reason I took then was an easy access to Vani Vilas Sagar when coming back from Shimoga.

Since you are heading to Belgaum, why Chitradurga? You should be able to take the road via Honnali to Harihar or Ranebennur.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by ampere

Tarikere-Hiriyur I dont think has improved in the recent times. I tried long back it was a bad 1-lane. Later I think @condor also mentioned it was wrecked. So if you happened to take it would be great to know the current condition.

The only reason I took then was an easy access to Vani Vilas Sagar when coming back from Shimoga.

Since you are heading to Belgaum, why Chitradurga? You should be able to take the road via Honnali to Harihar or Ranebennur.

It's a two part journey. Bangalore to Shimoga and then Shimoga to Belgaum. Shimoga to Belgaum there is no doubt. For the Bangalore to Shimoga part, I was thinking of trying the Hiriyur - Tarikere road. Since google is suggesting this road maybe they have improved it?

Anyway, right now things are a bit fluid. If I happen to take that road or get some info from locals, I will surely update here.