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Germany is to adhere to plans for a tunnel between Fehmarn, Germany, and Lolland, Denmark despite criticism over the cost and a delayed schedule. Denmark alone is likely to foot the €7.4 billion bill for the prestigious Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link immersed tunnel while Germany will pay for only access roads and other connections on its territory. Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, said her government and transport authorities will respond to more than 3,000 objections over the construction of the tunne

Reports from Nepal highlight the devastation the country has suffered due to its recent massive earthquake. Measuring an enormous 7.8 on the Richter scale, the quake has demolished many buildings in capital Kathmandu, as well as damaging roads and other infrastructure. This was followed by a series of aftershocks, one of which measured 6.7 on the Richter scale. World Highways correspondent Ram Krishna Wagle reports that with many road links to other towns severely damaged, this is hampering the relief eff

The Bolivian Government will spend some US$123 million during 2015 on a series of highway projects. The work will be carried out in the country’s eastern lowland Tarija Department, reports Business News Americas. Work commenced in 2014 on three highways in Tarija Department. These are the 66km Entre Ríos-Palos Blancos route, which is costing $83.4 million; the 45km Villamontes-Palo Marcado route costing $39 million; the 30km Río Isiri-La Central $32 million. The work is important to the country’s economy as

The Pacific Complete consortium is the preferred Delivery Partner for the NSW Government’s Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Highway upgrade in Australia. The Pacific Complete consortium comprises Laing O’Rourke and Parsons Brinckerhoff. The A$4.3 billion highway upgrade is Australia’s largest regional infrastructure project. NSW Roads and Maritime Services will deliver the project using a Delivery Partner model similar to the approach used for the highly successful construction project for the London Olympic

Work is underway on a widening and upgrade project for the RN1 national road. The improvement project will see the route becoming a section of the North-South highway. The upgrade includes adding additional lanes, effectively doubling the width of the road. The improvement works to national road RN 1 are being carried out over its 800km length and the project should be completed at the end of 2016. Also in Algeria, a legal case is ongoing regarding the East-West highway project. Allegations of corruption h

Mike Dreznes, executive vice president at the International Road Federation (IRF) discusses the proper utilisation of longitudinal barriers as a road safety priority Road authorities have a duty of care to ensure infrastructure not only meets safety requirements but provides protection for all road users. Crash barriers play an essential role in maximising safety, lowering the risk of sudden impact for road users and also allowing redirective capabilities.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said it will provide around US$2 billion for constructing new rural roads in five Indian states, according to The Hindu newspaper. The projects in Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal states, will involve constructing and upgrading 31,000km of rural roads that will improve connectivity to more than 12,500 villages. The move will also provide more employment opportunities in the area, improve school enrolment and provides better remuneration for f

Indonesian state construction firm Waskita Karya said it will be developing the US$2.7 billion Bali toll road project. But the Ministry of Public Works and Housing has yet to approve the 157km project which is in the pre-feasibility study stage. Waskita Karya’s finance director Tunggul Rajagukguk also said the company might seek nearly $1.8 billion of financing this year for not just road projects but also power transmission work. Financing could be around half through bond issuance and the other half v

3M, a maker of workzone safety products, has again donated US$20,000 to the 3M Visibly Safer Work Zones Project. Now in its fourth year, the project supports programmes of the American Traffic Safety Services Foundation (ATSSF) and the American Road and Transportation Builders Association Transportation Development Foundation (ARTBA-TDF) that provide scholarships for children of roadway construction workers killed or permanently disabled on the job. To date, the project has donated $50,000 to the ATSSF’s

Half of UK drivers in a recent survey admitted to breaking traffic laws and half of these drivers said they did it with intention. Of the drivers who willingly broke the law, half acknowledged they did it because they believed there was little chance of getting caught, or they simply did not agree the law and saw no reason to obey. Road safety charity Brake and vehicle insurance company Direct Line said the survey reveals a worrying attitude by many road users toward safety on highways. Brake said that U

Dynasol, a global maker of synthetic rubber, much of it destined for large off-road vehicles including construction equipment, will boost its production. Dynasol is a joint venture formed in 1999 by Repsol and Grupo Kuo. Dynasol will focus on developing products for the high-performance tyre which uses synthetic rubber as a raw material and accounts for 70% of the synthetic rubber demand worldwide. The joint venture will have an estimated revenue of US$750 million and will produce more than 500,000 tons a

The first pan-European 24-hour speeding enforcement crackdown resulted in police issuing more than 120,000 penalties. TISPOL, the European Traffic Police Network based in London, UK, said the “marathon” took place earlier this month and so far 17 out of 22 participating countries have provided data. A total of 4,352,234 vehicles were checked during the 24 hours. Of the 122,581 speeding offences, 116,479 were detected by police officers, with 6,102 detections using automatic devices. Police in Germa