[paragsachania]

I still remember when driving down to Bangalore from Pune, way back in 2009, soon after Khedshivapur toll Plaza, a group of college students holding their books and pens waved at our car asking us to stop and then started to collect details regarding our source and destination and our frequency of travel in this route. When asked why, they said that it was a survey on traffic density and pattern on this route as NHAI was planning to expand the current 4 lane road to 6 lane road. We were delighted and that's about it.

Ever since work started on the 6 lane expansion between Katraj and Satara, we have seen the endless progress that would even make snails appear faster. The traffic on this sector has remained higher all the times, thanks to the urban corridor soon after Kagal till Mumbai and the density of private vehicles that travel on this route every day. Not to forget the fact that the ubiquitous freight traffic on this road was always higher as it was a major road connecting the southern past to Mumbai. Also, back then the Central India route via Nagpur was never a preferred one for trucks who often ended up taking the longer route via Pune-Ahmedabad to reach the Northern part of the country. Even Mumbai/Pune to Goa was (is) via Kolhapur and not via Bombay-Goa route. I have been traveling by road to Pune ever since I was a kid and I still remember the grand billboard at Konduskar Fuel station soon after entering Maharashtra that proudly called itself “India’s largest retail fuel outlet” as early was 1997. This is exactly how busy this highway has always been since decades!

Coming to the 6 lane expansion work between Satara and Pune, it always amused me how given the density or traffic, frequent presence of populated villages and urban areas, the demographics especially around Khambhatki and Katraj Ghat would make 6 lane possible at all? Somehow, once the work started, we began to witness the good, bad and the worst too.

The Good:

• The completed sections of 6 lane was good in terms of road surface (but only for a limited period of time)
• It certainly helped in terms of lesser fatigue as compared to the earlier 4 lane as an extra lane on both the sides helped manage good average speeds
• The toll booths expanded as the traffic increased, especially Khedshivapur reducing the waiting times to an acceptable level (better than Attibele or Krishnagiri)

The bad:

• The width of the lanes, especially the slow-most lane was not adequate and the shoulders were near absent. This made 2 wheeler riders occupy the first lane
• Most of the sections do not have service lanes hence compel public transport vehicles like Buses and Rickshaws would stop on the first lane itself which was quite dangerous
• Width of the median is heavily compromised and at nights the glare from oncoming traffic can be an unpleasant experience; during rains, water splashes from the oncoming traffic too

The worst:

• The pace at which the work has progressed is perhaps the slowest I have ever seen, almost a decade now
• The conditions of roads even on completed sections gave away very soon and the agency hardly bothered to fix them every year
• At one time (2014-15) the service roads for diversions were in the most pathetic state which seem better now but main corridor is in really bad state
• Last December, I crawled 1 Km taking more than 45 minutes only because of a diversion that also was an intersection to a road leading to Bhor Ghat

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki

That is because the 6 lane work is in progress.

Remember the infamous Tumkur-Chitradurga-Haveri section that remained undone for more than 5 years around 2008-2013? This was a driver’s nightmare with horribly marked diversions, super large speedbreakers (Karnataka and its obsession with speedbreakers!!) and the mighty jams crossing Tumkur towards Nelamangala? In all these years, I felt this was the worst experience compared to the current state of Satara-Pune even when traffic in Karnataka section of this highway has always been on the lower side and incomparable to the density once you enter Maharashtra. Thankfully, they executed this after a lot of legal hurdles and contract was re-awarded to another consortium that managed to complete this work.

Once completed , it will be similar to the 120kms stretch between Tumkur and Chitradurga, a drivers delight

It was a driver’s delight even when Tumkur-Chitradurga was 4 lane. It remains a driver’s delight even now. But then, the biggest differentiator is the density of traffic in this sector, the absence of frequent towns and villages closer to the highway and also the very presence of brilliant service roads on both the sides, end to end. Compare this with Kolhapur – Pune and there is a sea of difference. For that matter, even Dharwad-Kagal is a drivers' delight.

Many reasons for this:

• Traffic density is almost 10 times to that we see in Karnataka section of the highway, be that weekday or weekend
• Too many towns and villages that are too close to the highway – Kagal, Kolhapur, Islampur, Karad, Satara, Shirwal, Khedshivapur etc. The bypasses are namesake
• In Karnataka Chitradurga and Hiriyur have elevated bypasses
• Towns like Sira, Davanagere, Ranebennur, Haveri have bypasses that are far away from the main city and hence you wont even known when you have crossed them
• The Kagal-Kolhapur-Islampur belt is covered with small to large industries on both sides of the corridor and so is the Shirwal-Pune sector
• Before I forget, the omnipresent 2 wheelers when driving anywhere in the state of Maharashtra that makes driving a very cautious affair than usual standards and hence slows you down

In the end, no matter how beautifully the 6 lane work is executed between Kolhapur to Pune, it can never become a drivers’ delight due to all of the above factors. But what we really need now is for the work to get complete so it at least adds some peace when you are driving in this sector and helps to gain considerable pace to cover the 200+ Kms that takes 4 hours today.

[yd_gli]

A discussion on this stretch is like opening a can of worms! I have been driving on this route for the last 20 years at least. The route has gone from good to bad to worse in over the last two decades. I drive to B'lore at least 4 times a year and the moment I cross the Kagal toll I heave a sigh of relief. It is almost like another universe.

Even though the Satara - Kolhapur stretch is smooth, the two wheeler/tractor traffic is maddening and will bring you to tears. Night driving on this patch is risky as hell. Some of the tractors are at driving at 10-20kmph and they don't have tail lights or reflectors. Basically if you are over 40, I wouldn't recommend driving this stretch in the night.

The Khambatki ghat is another level of misery with traffic coming down the ghat inspite of there being a tunnel.

The service roads/diversions are perpetually washed away after the monsoon and they take months to relay them. There is one flyover (can't remember the exact location) which has been lying incomplete for 10 years .

It is quite baffling that when one could build an excellent 3 lane expressway from Pune to Mumbai through the ghats why can't they build a straight road from Pune to Kolhapur of the same quality. On some digging around, I was told that the expressway and some of the other beautiful stretches of NH48 were built by a Swedish contractor.

[moralfibre]

Originally Posted by paragsachania

In the end, no matter how beautifully the 6 lane work is executed between Kolhapur to Pune, it can never become a drivers’ delight due to all of the above factors. But what we really need now is for the work to get complete so it at least adds some peace when you are driving in this sector and helps to gain considerable pace to cover the 200+ Kms that takes 4 hours today.

Brilliantly put. I doubt there is any scope to improve rather than a completely new expressway to exit from the current one and take commuters out of MH at a new exit point meeting NH48. The current highway will never be fixed.

[sagarpadaki]

Originally Posted by paragsachania

Remember the infamous Tumkur-Chitradurga-Haveri section that remained undone for more than 5 years around 2008-2013? This was a driver’s nightmare with horribly marked diversions, super large speedbreakers (Karnataka and its obsession with speedbreakers!!) and the mighty jams crossing Tumkur towards Nelamangala? In all these years, I felt this was the worst experience compared to the current state of Satara-Pune even when traffic in Karnataka section of this highway has always been on the lower side and incomparable to the density once you enter Maharashtra. Thankfully, they executed this after a lot of legal hurdles and contract was re-awarded to another consortium that managed to complete this work.

Yes, I do remember driving that stretch in that time period encountering multiple speed breakers, traffic diverted to oncoming lane effectively making it a single lane road and waiting at a few level crossings around Haveri.

[jazzrockz]

I remember an occasion from a couple of years back when I had to take a Volvo bus to Bangalore. I chatted up the Bus Driver about the road conditions. He let out a cry of anguish over our Maharashtra's road conditions. He added that them drivers' cant wait till they cross the crest of Nippani (Goa crossing) to stretch their legs. He said not just the road surface but also the proliferation of city traffic on the high speed highways keeps them on tenterhooks. Once they cross over they cover up whatever delays that have occurred from Pune to Nippani. I guess nothing has changed for the better.
But who is to blame? the state or the centre?

[RedTerrano]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

[*]Toll booths have serpentine queues and traffic indisciplined. No one follows a queue.

Found this: (emphasis mine)

Despite a new rule made last year to not charge vehicles from certain areas (like Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad) any toll due to their protests on the condition of the road, they are also still made to shell out the fee on this route.

To start with, I wasn't even aware of this rule.
But a certain gentleman was.

However, several passengers travelling towards Satara complained that they are illegally charged the fee at Khed-Shivapur toll plaza. One such commuter, 75-year-old Vilas Lele, who travelled to Ratnagiri via Satara in August this year, was a victim of the same, but fought for three months to get back his money. He narrated, “The men at the collection counter were rude and compelled me to pay, which I did in the moment to not lose out on time. When I returned to Pune, I met the district collector and NHAI officials. My issue was then directed to Reliance Infra. After a struggle of three months, I finally received the amount of Rs 95 back.”

Only a Punekar can wrestle the system for three months over 95/-!
Mr. Lele absolutely rocks!

Source

Jokes apart, the Pune Satara stretch has been in horrid condition for almost a decade. And the arrogance and callous attitude of the toll naka staff is not an exception, but a norm.

[bsdbsd]

My head is spinning after reading every post in this thread. I had always assumed that KAR roads are the worst and MH's should be better than ours. So many times I have expressed anguish at the state of roads in KAR in T-BHP. I have to think 100 times before I drive to Goa from BLR, that too after T-BHP helps me out in route and its conditions. I hit a speed breaker 20 kms out of Dharwad on Anmod road and puncutured my oil tank in 2017. I spent 40k rupees in repairs, hotel stays and flight tickets. This speed breaker is just 4 kms after the toll booth. Extremely depressing to think about all this.

Can we please jointly claim that our states have worst roads. I have always wondered how the road transport ministers and contractors sleep peacefully at night. Dont they have to travel on the same roads and do they feel nothing? Dont they feel like doing their jobs and try to make a difference in whatever they are doing? Why is that every work is targeted and executed at LCD of the levels expected?

[moralfibre]

Originally Posted by jazzrockz

I guess nothing has changed for the better.
But who is to blame? the state or the centre?

Great question I thought so here's my view.

Ownership: NHAI under MORTH and thereby the Central govt.

Reasons:

- Delayed land acquisitions
- Alignment of the highway itself passing through major towns
- Lack of future planning to facilitate expansion and the thought that traffic might rise manyfold

State:

- It is well known how local politicos / goons, etc hamper projects under the garb of protests for ecology, etc.
- The reason for most of these protests are insufficient greasing of palms of all local governing heroes who don't get their commission / cut / hafta
- If the contractor is small, direct physical threats work. If it is large corporation, agitating locals works the best.


So all in all, it is a joint effort of center, state and local bodies who hamper these. Ironically elected by the locals

[anshuman_b]

I think this problem is not limited only to pune-satara highway, this is a problem in entire Maharashtra. I traveled from pune to Kolkata in August, the road was in pathetic shape till amrabati, scraped my car many times. The moment I crossed into chattishgarh, the road condition improved dramatically.

[SkodaFan0]

I travelled from Navi Mumbai to Mangalore last month... took a route via Hubli. Fantastic roads. Yes, there's a lot of traffic and vehicles coming in from all directions, but I did not have an option but to slow down, remain patient and wait for the chaos to pass.
On the way back though, I took a different route and had a terrible experience.
Came via Goa, where the roads are single lane (Palolim onwards I think). Then, for some reason, Google Maps connected me to Belagavi, and reaching the highway was unimaginable misery through the tiny bylanes of its suburbs and city.
A special mention of horror must be made of the highways surrounding Pune. Potholes that could put Moon's craters to shame on roads where the traffic makes 60+kmph on an average and there's nowhere to go.
I am looking at bushes and mount replacement costing thousands ₹₹₹.

[scooby05]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Great question I thought so here's my view.

Ownership: NHAI under MORTH and thereby the Central govt.

Reasons:

- Delayed land acquisitions
- Alignment of the highway itself passing through major towns
- Lack of future planning to facilitate expansion and the thought that traffic might rise manyfold

State:

- It is well known how local politicos / goons, etc hamper projects under the garb of protests for ecology, etc.
- The reason for most of these protests are insufficient greasing of palms of all local governing heroes who don't get their commission / cut / hafta
- If the contractor is small, direct physical threats work. If it is large corporation, agitating locals works the best.


So all in all, it is a joint effort of center, state and local bodies who hamper these. Ironically elected by the locals

Imo, this problem is very imminent in Maharashtra, All rather most other states NH conditions are much much better! I find roads in Rajasthan, Gujarat, AP and even UP so so much better. Even our famed mumbai pune expressway is cracking up, culverts are getting bumpy, and nothing is being one! Our Minister Nitin Gadkari is in charge of roads etc, but even he has failed to get the local admin on board. So sum it as a typical Maharashtra Problem. Toll collection again is a Mafia gang of politically connected contractors.

[ruzbehxyz]

I just completed the Pune-Satara-Kolhapur section of NH48, on my way to and from Goa.
The stretch is still bad but steadily improving. However the saddest part is that this road is been constructed since last 10 years and whatever is already done is in a shabby state and not of good quality.
A proper 3+3 lane road is required. There is also no provision to bifurcate the local traffic like two wheelers, auto-rickshaws and others from the normal highway traffic.

The NH17 route from Panvel to Goa is also under construction from years and years. This in turn forces the Goa traffic to use NH48. Sad but true.

[roadrunner_nv]

So, what's new? We innovated disappearing roads and no country on this planet can lay a claim to that.

I've been riding on that road since 2004 and nothing has quite changed for these 16 years. We are being exploited. Pune itself is miserable in terms of infra. Anyone who has taken the Baner exit to University road will understand. Last week, even the expressway from Mumbai to Lonavala looked like it was riddled with uneven surface, constant changes in pitch and camber. I'm not talking about Mumbai as they seem to have hit an all time low on infra. In general, one of the highest local taxes state has looted money at our expense.

Everytime I fret, curse, resolve to not own a sedan, my wife has a question that shuts the argument down..."what can you do about it?".

Nothing, zlitch, nada. No accountability, penalty, reimbursement, not even a proper answer and plan of action. We forced to be resilient since our legal and political system sucks.

[abhatt]

I drove from Bangalore to Mumbai on May 13 this year. I am surprised with the comments here. I am trying hard to recollect issues if any. I crossed this stretch probably between noon and 3 pm.

Apart from the chaotic Covid 19 booths where they simply collected your information in the most chaotic way possible everything was smooth. Karnataka booths were way too organized and disciplined.

The reason I am worried with this thread is that I am travelling back to Bangalore pretty soon and wondering if I should time it well to avoid the hassles. Thanks a lot for the warnings in advance. I was planning to leave Mumbai at around 5 am which means I would be driving that route from 8 to 11am which might be peak for city travel.


As far as roads in Maharashtra are concerned, my father makes an annual trip to Shirdi and has been doing so for 2 decades now. He has always hated Maharashtra roads. I had always given the benefit of doubt to the heavy rains in this region but I know that good roads are still possible under such conditions as well.

Road from Nashik to Shirdi and even to Nashik was a nightmare to drive on in the past(probably years back) especially during or after the monsoon.

[ninjatalli]

My first memory of (self-driving) riding on this highway is back in 2005 - a friend was moving from Pune to Bangalore over the weekend and wanted company - someone who could also drive the car. A Santro filled with luggage - we left Pune late on a Friday evening with minimal planning and full enthusiasm.

Back then the Katraj tunnel wasn't complete so that took us 2+ hours to cross that section after which we faced moderate to minimal traffic while driving on the highway. We stopped on a highway hotel just ahead of Kolhapur and resumed driving early morning, entering Karnataka just after sunrise.

I have minimal memory of MH roads but I remember Maharashtra roads were relatively in much better shape, albeit if still only a 4 lane highway. Probably since due to the late hours, we didn't see much traffic while passing the busy cities of Satara and Kolhapur.

The rest of the day was spent bypassing the numerous diversions from Belgaum to Bangalore - I remember seeing unconstructed flyovers / bypasses and other work in progress every 10 - 20 kms throughout the highway. We entered Bangalore in the evening and I caught a train back to Pune the next day morning.

15 years later, the tables have turned and how!