Features

Major innovations in concrete paving systems will offer customers improved surface finishes - Mike Woof writes US manufacturers continue to dominate the concrete paving sector, with German firm Wirtgen being the only exception. A number of Chinese manufacturers have attempted to enter the concrete paving market with compact machines but have so far had little success in tempting customers away from proven brands. The expertise in for the niche segment of concrete paving remains the preserve of a handful

In India, more than 11% of all fatalities from traffic accidents, or over 16,000 lives, involve commercial vehicles Given the loss of life, and the costs of damage to goods and property, there is an urgent need to reduce, and eventually eliminate this unnecessary loss of life. Shell, Michelin, and IRF Geneva have come together with a new initiative "Drive Safe India" (www.drivesafeindia.org) to improve all aspects of safety associated with transport of goods on Indian roads. The goal of the Drive Safe Ind

Indiana exercised its authority to use a P3 contract when it partnered with Kentucky for new bridges across the Ohio River. Barney Allison and John Smolen* explain the groundbreaking availability payment deal. Earlier this year, traffic began rolling over the new tolled Lewis and Clark Bridge spanning the Ohio River from northern Kentucky to southern Indiana. The cable-stayed bridge is part of the award-winning Ohio Bridges Project to untangle traffic within the greater metropolitan area of Louisville, Kent

The first few months of 2017 have seen a flurry of new model introductions in the asphalt paving sector for both European and North American paving types - Mike Woof writes. Developments are being seen in both European and North American asphalt paving machines. The latest equipment will help boost productivity and quality for asphalt paving work, while many of the new machines also offer increased versatility. Innovations in telematics meanwhile are helping to ensure that new generation asphalt pavers also

The Fehmarnbelt Tunnel between Denmark and Germany is both ambitious and innovative, explains Susanne Kalmar Pedersen, project director at design engineering firm Ramboll, adviser to the client Fehmarn A/S. The ambitious Fehmarnbelt Tunnel - one of Europe’s largest ongoing infrastructure projects - is a priority project within the EU’s Trans European Network (TEN-T) programme. It will link the German island of Fehmarn with the Danish island of Lolland. The tunnel is an 18km immersed combined road and rail l

The latest developments in asphalt compaction equipment will help boost productivity and finish quality. The new generation compactors can utilise the latest generation machine control tools to deliver quality within the short timeframe determined by the asphalt temperature. Ammann has broadened its asphalt compaction range with the addition of the new ARP 95 K pivot-steer roller and the articulated ARX 90 and ARX 26 models. These units are available with Ammann’s proprietary ACE compaction systems to optim

Final delivery of the final stretch for Russia’s key highway project looks set to be delayed – Eugene Gerden writes. I now looks as if Russia’s most ambitious project in the field of road building in recent years, the building of a new high-speed road link between Moscow and St Petersburg, the country’s largest cities, will not be complete in time. The project was set up by the Russian government and several private investors. According to initial state plans, building of the new road should have been compl

Major developments in soil compaction are being introduced - Mike Woof writes. With manufacturers keen to meet new regulations and deliver greater performance to customers, an array of new soil compactors are now coming to market. One of the new developments from the Ammann Group is the unveiling of its ASC 110 Tier 3 soil compactor, which is powered by a Cummins QSG 4.5 diesel rated at 119kW and has a 2.13m-wide drum. This machine is designed to meet the needs of emergent markets where high quality fuels w

Within years, one in six UK local roads will need repairs or face closure, according to the latest Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance – ALARM – survey. The cumulative effect of an ageing network, decades of underfunding, increased traffic and wetter winters has led to around 17% of all UK local roads reportedly in poor structural condition, with less than five years of life remaining. The 22nd annual ALARM survey is a comprehensive study into local road maintenance funding and conditions. Local authori

Developments in asphalt plant technology are seeing major gains in energy efficiency and the use of RAP but some manufacturers are moving in different directions - Mike Woof writes. Asphalt Drum Mixers is offering its EX120 asphalt plant as a solution for producers needing a portable counterflow plant that can process high percentages of RAP. The plant features single-drum counterflow technology and is said to be compact, with a capacity of 120tonnes/hour, while the firm says that the machine meets all fede

The economic boom witnessed in India in the last two decades has led to an exponential increase in motorisation, urban traffic congestion and a dramatic deterioration of air quality. ITS can potentially alleviate many of these urban transport problems. IRF Geneva is organising a series of four roundtables on Intelligent Transport Systems, over a 12-month period, in India. These roundtables are a collaborative effort between companies and Indian government bodies and agencies to improve market conditions for

The latest developments in machine control technology will deliver major gains in quality and productivity. Machine control technology plays an increasingly important role in construction. The pace of development has been fast, with new systems offering major gains in both productivity and quality across a range of applications. At the recent CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2017 exhibition in Las Vegas, key advances were unveiled in machine control technologies suited to markets such as earthmoving, concrete paving and pil

Asphalt plant builders continue to develop new technologies to meet different demands from clients. Marini says that in addition to developing new and more sophisticated asphalt plants, the firm is also meeting demands from customers looking to upgrade existing asphalt plants with the addition of new systems. These can be used to boost output and material quality, while also delivering new grades of mixes. At the same time, plant upgrades can reduce the environmental profile of a plant, while improving its

Free-flow Electronic Toll Services have emerged as a reliable, safe and environmentally sustainable way of collecting road user charges, presenting key benefits over stop-and-go methods. ETS are now a mature market with key lessons learned from successfully addressing operational, technological, financial and regulatory principles. Having high-quality road infrastructure is important to boost country and transport sector competitiveness. Road infrastructure is always in need of funding aimed to build new in