get there and around
Air
The city has an airport (Coimbatore Airport) at Peelamedu (11 km from the city) and an air-force base at Sulur (15 km). The Coimbatore airport caters to domestic flights to all the major Indian cities and international flights to Sharjah and Singapore. The Extended Runway is now ready at Coimbatore airport. It now runs to 9,760 feet (2,970 m) and is capable of handling wide-bodied and “fat-bellied” aircraft, such as are used for international flights. With the extended runway, airlines can operate aircraft types such as 747 SP, A 330, 747-300B, 747-300 ER, 747-400 and 747-200.
Rail
Trains first began serving Coimbatore in 1872, upon construction of the Podanur (Coimbatore South) -Madras line connecting Kerala and the west coast with the rest of India[citation needed]. Broad gauge trains connect Coimbatore to all parts of India and Tamil Nadu. Meter gauge line existed between Podanur and Dindigul got closed on May 2009 and is under gauge conversion. The Coimbatore Junction is well connected to major Indian cities like Chennai, Bangalore, Indore, Bhopal, Gwalior, Jabalpur, New Delhi and Mumbai, besides the neighbouring State of Kerala. It is second highest revenue yielding station in the Southern Railway division of Indian Railways The Coimbatore Junction comes under the Jurisdiction of the Salem Division and contributes 42.17% of its divisional income. The facilities and projects however, have to be improved. Coimbatore North Junction is another important railway junction in the city.
Road
The city has six major arterial roads and three National Highways,
* NH-47 (cochin–Salem),
* NH-67 (Mysore–Nagappattinam) and
* NH 209 (Bangalore–Dindigul)
A new bypass highway built by Larsen and Toubro completed in 1998 has helped reduce truck traffic in the city.
Coimbatore has major bus stands. They are:
* Gandhipuram Bus Stand (Buses going to Erode, Tirupur, Namakkal ,Dharapuram, Mettupalayam, Ooty, Salem, Bangalore, Chennai and other distant places)
* Singanallur Bus Stand (Buses going to Madurai, Rajapalayam, Karur, Trichirapalli, Thanjavur, Kumbakonam and nearby towns)
* Town Bus Stand (Local Buses)
* Thiruvalluvar Bus Stand, Gandhipuram (SETC, Karnataka State RTC Buses, Kerala State RTC Buses and Pondicherry State Buses)
* Ukkadam Bus Stand (Buses to Palakkad, Pollachi, Udumalpet, Palani, Dindigul, Kodaikanal and other nearby places)
* Omni Bus Stand in Sathy Road, Gandhipuram (Luxury Buses to Bangalore, Chennai and Prominent Overnight Locations in Tamilnadu and Kerala)
* Mettupalayam Road Bustand - Under construction (being constructed by Bhuvana Constructions Limited, Coimbatore)
The city has a very high vehicle-to-population ratio. Town buses started operations in 1921. Town bus services serve most parts of the city, as well as other towns and villages in the district. Buses also connect the district with all towns in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, South and West Karnataka, Pondicherry and Tirupathi (Andhra Pradesh). The number of mofussil routes operated by Coimbatore division is 119 with a fleet of 500 buses. The number of town buses in the city is around 800 in 228 different routes. The city is also served by auto rickshaws. However, rickshaw drivers have had a reputation for fleecing passengers, resulting in competition from call taxis.
