[niteshm]

I travelled via the expressway on 22 Jan 2023, Sunday to Nagpur. Entered the expressway from Takli exchange after having lunch at Sanskruti Pure Veg near Dharmapur flyover, Waluj. Already lot had been said about the quality and purpose, so I will not repeat that.

During the drive we came across herd of monkeys crossing the road. Thankfully we were alert and the driver in front of us also slowed down, helping others. There is some construction going on around Washim, I guess, where we have to use the wrong side. Be careful to reduce speed from 120 to 60 to 30 before joining this lane.

There are petrol pumps at the entry around 50-80 km from Takli interchange. Towards Nagpur there is one when the board reads 104 km more to go. Here you can get puri-bhaji and Maha Tea. We can refill the tank after entering the expressway and top it up again near exit (104 km before Nagpur).

[OctYFAN]

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Here are some windscreen shots.

Beautiful road:
Attachment 2406956


You have visibility of upto a mile (so to speak), and with nice smooth tarmac, and speed limit of 120 km/h, progress is fast:
Attachment 2406955

The road is as good as any I have seen in the western world! The exit signs, the exits roads and interchanges, the lane markings, everything is absolutely state of the art as as good as the best in the world!

Personally, if I saw these pictures our of context I would one hundred percent think this is a freeway in the US. The landscape and the roads themselves look very much like the interstates of the US of A.

But not a bad thing at all since the US interstate system is one of the best in the world. Hope to see more roads like these soon.

[AYP]

Originally Posted by vivek95

Thank you very much @RaahmiRathi and @Meer


Finally fulfilled my wish of driving my VW Polo 1.2 Comfortline Petrol on Hindu Hrudayasamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg ( HHBTMSM ) aka Mumbai--Nagpur Super Communication Expressway.



I drove 1576.3 kms in 22.5 hours during this round trip and thus ended mine and my Polo's madness !!

Regards

Hey Doc!

Excellent write up I must say. I am planning to visit the Expressway tomorrow or the day after. If I plan for tomorrow, I shall leave from Sanpada at around 7 in the evening. If it is the day after, I may leave at around 8 in the morning. I have a few queries if you could help-

1. Is this the right location of the Shirdi interchange?

https://g.co/kgs/idRxNX

2. Gmaps suggests taking this route-



Is there any specific reason why you went via Nashik?

3. Did you come across any cameras or speed interceptor vehicles in your journey?

4. Any other tips you might wanna share with a fellow Navi Mumbaikar?

Thanks.

[RashmiRathi]

Originally Posted by AYP

Any other tips you might wanna share with a fellow Navi Mumbaikar?

I went there a month ago so sharing my feedback.

1. You have taken the next entrance. Use this one which is much closer to Shirdi

https://maps.app.goo.gl/VsKggyXGJmn7aRoq6

2. Avoid this ghoti sinnar route in nights. Two laned heavily trafficked road. Better to take a longer route via Nashik which is much safer.

3. No camera which I have seen but in general advised to remain within limits.

4. Get your tyres checked before boarding the road. I got a tyre burst (MRF, 2 month old), luckily no one was harmed.

[vivek95]

Originally Posted by AYP

Hey Doc!

Excellent write up I must say. I am planning to visit the Expressway tomorrow or the day after. If I plan for tomorrow, I shall leave from Sanpada at around 7 in the evening. If it is the day after, I may leave at around 8 in the morning. I have a few queries if you could help-

1. Is this the right location of the Shirdi interchange?

https://g.co/kgs/idRxNX

2. Gmaps suggests taking this route-

Attachment 2409708

Is there any specific reason why you went via Nashik?

3. Did you come across any cameras or speed interceptor vehicles in your journey?

4. Any other tips you might wanna share with a fellow Navi Mumbaikar?

Thanks.

Hello. Thank you so much and sorry for a late reply. I hope you are having a great drive in case you have already started.

1. The Shirdi interchange of Samruddhi Mahamarg is at Kopargaon as pointed out by @RashmiRathi.

It's here - Entry Samruddhi Highway to Mumbai nagpur
https://maps.app.goo.gl/L974MyQv743QvpiY9

2. I went via Nasik because I had started at night from Mumbai(Chembur) at 9:30pm and didn't want to risk travelling through desolated hilly section of Ghoti--Sinnar direct route with uncertainty in mind about road conditions. I was crossing Ghoti around 12:30 midnight or so. During return in daylight hours, I did take this route which is a very good 2 lane but laden with heavy trucks/trailers, so driving and overtaking is painful. I have decided to stick to Nasik--Sinnar route henceforth as it is stress free ( 4/6 lane roads all the way)

3. No speed cameras anywhere.Speed limit is 120. Highway is extremely tempting, you may not realise when your vehicle is crossing 130 kmph, the highway and straight clear views for long distances are that good. But exercise caution and consciously maintain 115-120 kmph all throughout and you will do this 520 kms of Expressway in 5 hours absolutely safely.

4. For a fellow Navi Mumbaikar I have few tips apart from the repeated advice given on this thread about tanking up and checking tyre pressures before hitting Expressway.

For an 8 am morning start from Sanpada, I would suggest taking this route --> Ghansoli--Mahape--Pipeline road--Kalyan phata--Palava city--Katai Naka--Dombivali--Kalyan--Bhiwandi onto NH3 for exiting Mumbai metropolis. Concretisation of roads on this section is 98% completed (4/6 lane roads all the way). No tolls and for morning 8 a.m start, this works best.

For an evening 7pm start start from Sanpada, simply stick to the standard Ghansoli--Airoli--Airoli bridge--Eastern express highway--Thane route to exit Mumbai metropolis. Two tolls on this route - Airoli and Mulund worth Rs. 40/- each and evening traffic will be really bad but better than the mayhem on Shilphata--Kalyan route. The Airoli--Eastern express highway has very good street lighting all throughout unlike shoddy infrastructure of Kalyan--Dombivali region. The Thane route has equally crazy traffic but definitely feels better and orderly than the evening Kalyan traffic. Roads are ofcourse always much better and wider on the Thane route with good lighting as mentioned earlier.

We Mumbaikars are used to driving on Mumbai-- Pune Expressway every now and then. The character of Mumbai--Pune expressway is unique with all those things it has on offer -- India's first and oldest expressway, scenic ghats, curves, tunnels, crazy high traffic, swanky foodmalls etc. Experience on Samruddhi Mahamarg phase 1 is different and feels way more modern with all it's high class infrastructure and it's is all about speed. Justifies for it being called as "Super Communication Expressway". I was reading on HVK Facebook page about a person who did Pune--Nagpur--Tadoba 827 kms in 9 hours 15 mins flat out !!! This was unthinkable until Samruddhi Mahamarg became a reality !! True game changer project in Maharashtra.

I have my second drive on Samruddhi Mahamarg already scheduled for next fortnight, taking a long detour to head to Bhopal I am sure the time taken will be exactly the same as compared to standard Mumbai--NH3--Indore--Dewas--Bhopal route, even though I am adding a whopping 360 kms extra. That's what Samruddhi Mahamarg has to offer !! That 520 kms section on Expressway is a game changer. Absolutely safe, superfast and stress free driving !! I have driven Mumbai--Bhopal--Mumbai via NH3 , 3 times in last 1 year and all the sections on that route are busy. On the contrary Samruddhi Mahamarg and Nagpur--Betul--Bhopal route will provide much much lesser traffic.Lets see whether my madness will be of any worth in reality.

Have a great drive

[tharian]

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Quoting myself above just to highlight how eager I was to drive on this highway. And very happy to say that I did this drive last week, and absolutely enjoyed it.

I am sure to go back there soon and do more drives in that part of the country now!

After reading your post and seeing the pictures, I seriously am thinking of driving there just to drive this road.
Most of the pictures don't even look like it is in India, especially one of the pictures which shows the smooth concrete surface unlike the usual rough surface seen elsewhere.

I guess the closest we can get to this kind of road around Bangalore is the new Bangalore Mysore expressway. Although the speed limit on it is 100 and the roads are wide enough, in terms of quality and safety/signage, it is nowhere close.

[anjan_c2007]

True, the Samruddhi Mahamarg has opened a much wanted corridor between East and West Maharashtra. But at the same time it has been causing alarming road accidents costing human lives. And also the animal deaths are becoming a routine, as there is no one at the helm who appears to be taking stock of to mitigate these issues. Speed guns have been lately deployed, but even two days back there was a fatal car crash. Much more needs to be done by the state government and by MSRDC which looks after the inaugurated stretch presently.

They have also constructed the first ever wildlife flyover on this expressway. But practicality has been evidently ignored. Just yesterday I saw a video clipping of a few sambhars dangerously crossing the expressway and jumping onto the other side. Luckily, there was no vehicle traversing the stretch at this moment.

Unfriendly wildlife passes

https://m.timesofindia.com/nagpur/wi...w/95989917.cms

7 animals dead during the last 18 days since the expressway was opened

https://m.timesofindia.com/city/nagp...w/96606005.cms

14 wild boars killed - news of 11/01/23

https://m.timesofindia.com/city/nagp...w/96892514.cms

https://www.facebook.com/aditya.josh...ibextid=Nif5oz

Today's Times of India, Nagpur carries gory images of animal deaths under the headline "Samruddhi :Super Expressway for Human Beings, Super Deadly for Animals". I am unable to get its link through TOI.

[Veloster76]

I travelled yesterday from Nagpur to Shirdi using it. Wow what a feeling, you can continuously drive at 120 kmph for kms and kms. No stress as the vehicle congestion is least due to higher speeds. Covered the entire stretch in 5 hrs .Roads up to Shelu Bazaar from Entrance are slightly bumpy especially at every bridge. This may be due to the reason that bridge and cement roads are not at the same level. Despite that it is easily possible to maintain speeds of 120 kmph.
However only caution needs to be maintained is that one might feel boredom as the roads are straight for long stretches.

[Ksingh544]

Originally Posted by rakesh_r

Did our yearly sojourn to seek Sai baba’s blessings with our newly purchased Gurkha. Since the Samruddhi Mahamarg was starting from Shirdi, decided to take this opportunity to cover the stretch.
1- Excellent road conditions, seamless joints. The expressway is fully concrete, bridges are tarred.
2- Roads are well marked.
3- Most petrol pumps from Nagpur to Shirdi are operational (fuel availability). Most petrol pumps stock on wafers, snacks, and machine dispensed tea/coffee. We survived on Haldiram wafers and apple juice.
4- Absolutely no wayside amenities available. You can use the washrooms of the fuel stations, no questions asked.
5- Concrete surface is pretty rough, since the Gurkha comes with AT tyres, the ride was a bit noisy.
6- Saw Foxes, Langurs, Peacocks and stray dogs wandering all over the highway. One needs to be alert as i saw lot of carcasses (dogs).
7- The Nagpur entry point is all decked up with laser lights and flowers. One can visit the entry point at night to see the lightings and project presentations, with speakers blaring out songs praising the obvious.
8- Saw lot of tyre burst cases and accidents (a completely burnt duster, an Ecosport with a sheared roof as it ploughed through the barrier, a completely total led Accent with a missing front end, a truck minus its under carriage)

All in all, it’s a boon for people heading to the Vidarbh.

PS: Also visited Lonar crater for which we took the Mehkar interchange.

Hi,

Thanks for sharing your experience on the this expressway in the Gurkha.

How did the Gurkha perform? what was the top speed you went to?

and at any point did you feel that there was a lack of power, since on roads like these you can really push the vehicle.

Thank you

Kundan.

[isavemayur]

Finally back from trip to Pench National Park from Pune via this Super Communication Expressway .

Car used was Tata Nexon EV Max.

We started around 04:30 hrs from Pune took the Pune - Aurangabad SH .
Charging patterns are attached in the sheet

We took the Swarangi Interchange to connect this expressway.
Once connected, we maintained cruise of 95-100 to reach our FC at Karanja Lad.

Reached Nagpur (Hotel Orient - JioBP Charger) at 07:30PM.

Few Observations during the trip.
1. No Washrooms.
2. Road gets boring after couple of hours (may be due to EV), if there are Food Plaza's after every 100Kms it will make journey simple.
3. Everywhere across the Eway could see tyre burst markings
4. Saw couple of incidences of front bumper missing and people searching them
5. I might not be wrong if I say , I saw more animals on this highway than my visit to Pench National Park . Sambar crossing expressway was also captured on my dashcam here .
6. Anyone with EV can now travel to Nagpur using this route as there are chargers ~100kms gap on this Expressway.

[Sushil Kumar]

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

I do not think either of these points are true.

Sir, The speed rating of tyres are at standard temperature and pressure and we should not try for such speeds

[AYP]

Visited the Expressway on 25th from Navi Mumbai and here is my short post regarding the same. I only went till Aurangabad which is 98km from the Shirdi interchange. The total distance was slightly over 700km.

Started from Ghansoli at 7PM in my Figo 1.5 TDCi. While GMaps was suggesting to take a different route via Ghoti, I took the recommendation of the fellow BHPians RashmiRathi and Vivek95 and decided to take the Nashik Route which was about 45 mins longer.

1. Route-

i. Ghansoli- Kalwa- Nashik(via NH160)-Sinnar- Shirdi Interchange(via NH752G)- Samruddhi Expressway- Aurangabad

Aurangabad- Samruddhi Expressway- Shirdi Interchange- NH752G- Yeola- Nashik(via the Nashik- Aurangabad highway)- Thane(via the Nashik-Mumbai highway)- Navi Mumbai(Sanpada).

2. Timeline-

7 pm- Started from Ghansoli

9:45 pm- Reached the Ghat section just before Nashik. Took a 15 minute break.

12:30 am- Reached the Shirdi interchange and had dinner at a restaurant which is barely 200m away from the interchange. This is the location-

https://maps.app.goo.gl/kRqTmHgYn5Ckpfdz8

For all practical purpose, the above location can also be used as the location for the Shirdi interchange. There is also an Indian Oil Outlet just next to this Restaurant. I refueled here.

1 am- Started my journey from Shirdi to Aurangabad(98km)

1:40 am- Stopped just after the Aurangabad toll exit for 30 minutes.

2:15 am- Started my journey back to Shirdi

2:50 am- Started my journey towards Nashik on 752G

4:45 am- Reached Nashik and took a 15 min break

7 am- Reached Thane and took a 15 min break

8 am- Reached my home in Navi Mumbai(Sanpada)

3. Some points about the route-

i. The route conditions are terrible when you first hit NH160 towards Nashik. The same also applies when you are approaching Thane on the way back. Big potholes, gaps between road sections are aplenty and it makes sense to drive at a moderate pace.

ii. Except for the bad sections mentioned above, the rest of the route till Nashik is in good condition. However, the roads start to deteriorate once you start approaching Sinnar.

iii. The 60-70km stretch from a few kms before Sinnar to Shirdi is bad. There are lot of diversions(atleast 8-10). Now normal diversions aren't too bad but there are some stretches where there is a break in the Asphalt and you land straight on Kutchha roads with loose sand and gravel. The road is great when it is wide but due to diversions, the overall experience is bad. In a way, this stretch is quite tricky and plays tricks on your mind by offering wide 4 lane roads but periodically presents its ugly face by the means of diversions. There are a few markings throughout this stretch which indicates a speed limit of 30. Use these markings to anticipate a diversion ahead. This route also has a lot of rumble strips.

iv. While going back, I went to Nashik via the Aurangabad Nashik highway and to be honest, I'd prefer this over the Sinnar-Shirdi 'highway'. Yes, it is not very wide(still four lane throughout with minor diversions when starting from Shirdi) and you don't have too many amenities here but it never surprises you. All the potholes have been covered and the surface is smooth for speeds upto a 100.

v. It is better to carry some cash as the petrol pumps at night outside major cities don't accept UPI or card.

4. Expressway-

i. The best roads I have experienced in India. I haven't driven on the roads in North(Delhi Agra highway and likes) so not sure how it compares to them but it is much much better than the Mumbai-Pune expressway.

ii. The markings on the road are excellent and tolls are present only at exits.

iii. The roads are super straight with only minor curves which one should be able to take without reducing speeds. There is a proper shoulder lane as well. Combining this factor with lack of traffic on the expressway, you can pretty much maintain your pace for a long stretch of time without needing to slow down. I never had to shift gears and my speed never dropped below triple digits.

iv. There are 3 exits on the way towards Aurangabad. The first exit is after about 35 kms for Vaijapur, the second exit is after 65 kms for Dhule and the third exit is for Aurangabad, the one which I took.

v. There is a petrol pump just after the Vaijapur(when going towards Nagpur) exit and when going towards Mumbai, there is a petrol pump just after the Dhule exit.

vi. I saw a couple of Ertigas in the median breaks but they didn't seem to be operational, not at night atleast.

vii. The petrol pumps at night refused to provide air service. Better to check air at Nashik before venturing into the smaller cities/towns. I had a portable air pump and used it to top up the air before hitting the Expressway.

viii. There is a hint of unevenness about the roads(it could be my car or those high speeds which could be contributing to this effect). This is more prominent when you start from Shirdi towards Nagpur. Better to drive cautiously for the first 10 kms.

ix. I heard a lot of people say that it gets boring to drive on its highway and to be very honest, these words became clear to me during the first 30-40 km stretch. Straight roads, lack of traffic, lack of curves, ability to maintain speeds without slowing down, all adds to this effect.

x. The toll until Aurangabad is INR 170(98*1.73). The total toll which I incurred was INR 650(325 each side).

5. Pics-

Since I was driving at night, the pictures didn't come out very well. Yes, I wouldn't excuse my average photo taking skill as well.

Just before the start of Nashik ghats-



After taking the Aurangabad exit-








Some stats from the trip-

Total distance(this is less by 7-8km since forgot to reset at the start of the trip)-



This average is for the return journey from Aurangabad(approx 350 km)-



The average speed for the return journey-



Resting after the journey-



Being welcomed home during the early hours of Republic Day-



To sum it up, I'd say that if you like to drive, it is worth going to this road. You may or may not cover the entire distance but even 100-200km will more than suffice and this distance is more than enough to get a feel of this expressway.

Plan your own journey now.

[rakesh_r]

Originally Posted by Ksingh544

How did the Gurkha perform? what was the top speed you went to?

The Gurkha performed pretty well. I am more of a sedate driver, so maintained my speeds between 100-120kmph. Since my vehicle is new, i kept my speeds at 100-110kmph.
With the Gurkha, what you would definitely feel is the lack of Cruise Control.
Did i feel the vehicle underpowered, yes but not always, but again the Gurkha isn't made for high speeds.
Although the highway is a marvel, it does tend to get boring after some time, my wife slept for most of the time during the entire journey. As for me I had created a playlist of some of my favourite Podcasts and books (Audible) to keep me awake as music makes me sleepy.

[nadbe]

Originally Posted by niteshm

There are petrol pumps at the entry around 50-80 km from Takli interchange. Towards Nagpur there is one when the board reads 104 km more to go. Here you can get puri-bhaji and Maha Tea. We can refill the tank after entering the expressway and top it up again near exit (104 km before Nagpur).

I am travelling on 4th feb from pune to nagpur and have a senior citizen travelling with us, so wanted to know the stoppages we can take. I plan to start by 5am from pune and take the first stop before entering the takli interchange near Waluj.I have dutta digamgar or sankruti pure veg near waluj as options. Other stop seems to be on petrol pumps on samruddhi as you mentioned above.

Do we have washroom facility on petrol pumps on samruddhi?

[JoshMachine]

Originally Posted by JoshMachine

--
I am longing to write this after my own drive, someday.

And that day happened to be yesterday

I experienced the full glory of the Samruddhi expressway while travelling from Pune to Nagpur via the Takli interchange near Aurangabad. And yes, all that has been said by our fellow BHPians is exactly true - both the good part about the infrastructure + design, and the not-so-good part about lack of facilities + surface quality etc.

Have put a detailed post here.

Sharing few pics:-







...and some dashcam videos to provide a perspective of how it actually feels to be riding on the expressway, or rather a "runway":

https://youtu.be/5JOjoTQ8PdE

https://youtu.be/q06ddYsWA0U

Would like to add to what has been mentioned on this thread, that the road design + signages + lane design et al is just top-class. Truly, one of the best infrastructure projects that I have witnessed in India.

The moment you step on the expressway, you feel awed and to a certain extent, overwhelmed by the sheer magnanimity of it all! The arrow-straight cement top just goes on and on for kilometers. The best place to try out cruise control. You see overpasses, underpasses (marked with green protective sheds) - and all of this for wildlife. Just amazing thoughtfulness.
No sharp turns anywhere, good banking of roads, and plenty of exit signs for all the districts along the route.

The one grouse is the surface quality, I found it uneven and bumpy at few places specially towards the Takli interchange entrance and exit towards Nagpur - for about 30-40 km or so. This feedback is prominent more on the outer lanes. I realized this and stuck to the middle lane.

Another issue is the lack of facilities for food + restroom. I cannot imagine a family with kids or senior citizens to travel comfortably on this expressway until a foodmall or something similar comes up. The route from Takli interchange to Nagpur is about 4-5 hours long. Although people do stop by the roadside at the shoulders, but that is outright dangerous any day.

Another word of caution is the tyre health, accentuated by the 120 km/h speed limit prevalent on all sections. Since almost everyone will want to ride quickly, it is very important to get the tyres checked & inflated properly to the required rating. Come summer, when temperatures in this part of the state soar high rapidly, having good tyre health is going to be very critical!

As for fuel stops, I saw few located on either sides of the stretch so that shouldn't be a problem. Folks need not worry about tanking up before hitting the expressway.

All in all, this is a marvelous piece of engineering, it needs to be made comfortable quickly to ensure people travelling on it do so without any hassles.

I paid Rs 775 toll while exiting at Nagpur. For my overall Pune - Nagpur trip, the A4 returned a very healthy FE of about 18 km/l, obviously helped along by the generous cruise control on the Samruddhi expressway.

Looking forward to the return journey already!