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Mexico is cutting its transportation budget
February 23, 2016
The Mexican Secretariat of Communications and Transport (SCT) says that the US$6.98 billion budget cut made by the Federal Government will impact on infrastructure projects. According to the SCT, the completion of 20 road initiatives will be delayed while the body will also downsize its workforce. In a bid to redress the balance, the SCT will seek public-private partnerships (PPPs) to continue with certain infrastructure projects.
South Korea’s road safety improving
February 23, 2016
South Korea’s road safety is improving, according to its National Police Agency. The figures show that the number of deaths caused by traffic crashes in the country dropped from 4,762 in 2014 to 4,621 in 2015. Of note is that 38.8% of the road deaths involved pedestrians. Cause for concern is that the number of female victims involved in fatal crashes increased by 3.1% to 540. On a more positive note, the ratio of deaths in every 10,000 cars dropped from 2.6 in 2010 to 1.9 in 2015. A total of 583 people wer
Commencing on major new US highway link
February 23, 2016
Work is now commencing on the US Route 301 project, which will cost US$635 million and is intended to reduce congestion and benefit commerce in the Northeastern United States. “When completed, the project will link to I-95 and support the economy of not only Delaware but also one of the nation’s largest regions,” said US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “It will increase access to economic opportunity by making it easier for people to commute to jobs in the fastest growing region of the state.”
Increase in distances driven in the US
February 23, 2016
Drivers in the US have set a new record for total distance travelled. New data released today by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) show that US driving reached 5.0368 trillion km (3.148 trillion miles) by the end of 2015, beating the previous record of 4.8048 trillion km (3.003 trillion miles) in 2007.
VIDEO: Changing a tyre, Saudi Arabian style
February 23, 2016
The next time you are worried or irritated about changing a flat tyre, don’t be. Just be grateful that the vehicle is not moving. Be grateful that your car is also not being driven along on only two wheels. This five-minute video is a tribute to a lot of things, not least the driver’s skill in keeping the SUV up on two wheels and steady enough for the five people working on the tyre change. But consider the skills of those changing the tyres.
Godshilla makes a run for it and blocks Isle of Wight road
February 23, 2016
It was a heart-stopping moment late one night as a car approached an 8m tall animal that was blocking the road. Most people, seeing what should have been an extinct dinosaur – a triceratops – in their path would have turned and run in the opposite direction. But for people in the English village of Godsill, on the Isle of Wight, the dinosaur was a well-known resident, albeit not a living animal. Chris Hollingshead snapped the photo and put it on his Facebook, which can be seen by clicking here.
VIDEO: camper trailer and snowmobile takes to a frozen lake
February 22, 2016
Canadian love their ice fishing, but sometimes it gets just a little chilly out there on a windswept lake, especially when it is already -20C with no wind-chill factored in. Some people have tents and some have small portable protective huts big enough for one person. But there is a better way to head out across a frozen lake, as this do-it-yourself ice fisherman shows.
STRABAG reports satisfactory financial performance
February 22, 2016
Construction firm STRABAG says that its performance in the 2015 financial year was ‘satisfactory’ and that its outlook for 2016 is positive. “We closed an overall satisfactory year in 2015 with a higher output volume on nearly unchanged employee levels and a lower order backlog. In 2016 we want to maintain the output volume at its high level and raise our EBIT margin to 3%. Thanks to our improved risk management and cost reductions, we are confident that we will reach this goal after having also succeeded i
Sales gain for Italian manufacturers
February 22, 2016
An upswing is being seen in construction machine sales in Italy, according to the latest official figures. The data from the Samoter-Prometeia Observatory reveal increases in key markets. Gains have been seen in Europe (+7.7%), Central and Eastern Europe and Turkey (+3.7%), North America (+23.1%), Central and South America (+6.3%), Middle East (+26.3%), Asia (+28.7%), Australia (+23.5%) and Africa (+2.5%). However the figures also show another sharp fall in Russia (-62.8%).
IRF achievement awards looking for applicants
February 22, 2016
The IRF is looking for applicants for its 2016 IRF Global Road Achievement Awards. Founded in 2000, the IRF's Global Road Achievement Awards competition recognises exceptional projects across 12 categories. The last call for applications will be on April 11th, 2016. The 2016 winners will be recognised at the 2nd IRF Asia Regional Congress & Exhibition, which will be held October 16th-20th in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Progress being made for key Chile mega projects
February 22, 2016
Progress is being made in Chile for two key mega projects, the Chacao Bridge and the El Melon Tunnel. Chile's Ministry of Public Works (MOP) has ordered the consortium working on the Chacao Bridge project to carry out additional studies. The consortium comprises Systra, OAS, Aas-Jakobsen and Hyundai and the project is worth US$511.45 million. The consortium has to respond to observations made by the MOP on the design proposal presented in August 2014. The works to build the bridge now look likely to continu
Comer Industries sees nearly a 10% drop in sales for full year 2015
February 22, 2016
Year end results for Comer Industries showed revenue down at €327 million, a 9.4% dip from €361 million for fiscal year 2014. However, the company reported that excluding the sale of the electric wheel product line in January last year, the revenue drop would have been 5%. Comer Industries is based in Reggiolo, Italy and has around 1,240 employees. It designs and manufactures advanced engineering systems and mechatronic solutions for power transmission for major producers of agricultural and industrial ma
MTU and Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Company form JV
February 19, 2016
MTU Friedrichshafen and Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Company will set up a 50/50 joint venture to manufacture MTU diesel engines in China. MTU Friedrichshafen, a subsidiary of Rolls-Royce Power Systems, and Guangxi Yuchai Machinery (GYMCL), part of China Yuchai International Limited, will each invest €10.5 million in the joint venture. The joint venture will be based at Guangxi’s primary manufacturing facilities in Yulin City in Guangxi Province, southern China. Production is expected to start in 2017 and
Ritchie Bros. acquires online equipment listing service Mascus
February 19, 2016
Canada-based Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers has acquired the online equipment listing service Mascus International Holding for US$26.6 million in cash. The deal gives Ritchie Bros. 100% of the equity in Mascus, subject to working capital adjustments under the terms of the share purchase agreement. Mascus will continue to operate under its branding and management team. The company lists more than 360,000 items for sale and gets around 3.2 million monthly website visits across 58 countries and in 42 language
Chile struggles to meet US$1.5 billion goal for tendering in 2106
February 19, 2016
The Chilean government reached its goal of tendering infrastructure projects worth US$1.1 billion in 2015, its first year in power, but will likely miss its 2016 target of $1.5 billion by next month. This has been unofficially confirmed by the Ministry of Public Works, which has stated that it will not be possible to announce new tenders over the coming weeks. The projects with delays include the new Rancagua-Alhue and Santiago-Marga Marga-Quillota roads, as well as the creation of a dual carriageway on the