News

From Monday 8th December a pan-European police road safety operation will commence. The aim is to raise awareness of the dangers of drink-driving and drug driving. The operation will involve officers conducting alcohol and drug checks at any time of the day and night. The message from pan-European police body TISPOL is simple: the ability to drive safely is impaired by even a small amount of alcohol. Do not drink and drive. Drivers can expect highly visible and widespread enforcement of alcohol and drug law

Details of a major programme of road building projects have been unveiled by the UK Government. The plan envisages some €18.83 billion (£15 billion) being spent on constructing new road links and upgrading existing routes. This is the largest single programme of works for the UK’s road network for several decades. The plan includes 100 major projects, perhaps the most notable being the long-awaited tunnel for the A303 past the Stonehenge archeological site. The existing route is narrow at this point and suf

In Colombia plans are underway to try and revive the project to construct the La Linea tunnel. The project has been beset with problems since work commenced. Problems have included insufficient funding, unexpectedly poor ground conditions and some firms involved having the wrong kind of insurance. The Segundo Centenario consortium is building the La Linea tunnel and is keen for this to continue. The new plan involves the incorporation of local firm Construcciones e Inversiones Beta, which would acquire a 40

French engineering firm Egis has expanded further into the Brazilian infrastructure market with the purchase of highways contractor Lenc for an undisclosed sum. A statement from Egis said the acquisition is part of a strategy to expand aggressively in Brazil that it has been focusing on since 2011. Lenc, established in Sao Paulo in 1975, has 450 employees whose road building work ranges from preliminary studies and project management to work supervision and inspection. It also operates nearly 2,500km

Indoogoo, a social and trading network for the construction industry, has added geolocation of available equipment to its My Rentals Website. Users of My Rentals have been locating and renting heavy equipment from big organisations including national outfits and smaller local traders. The new service now allows users to search for the machinery they wish to rent, specifying exactly where and when it is needed. The user is presented with a customised map showing all suitable machinery in the specified area.

The head of Brazil’s association of road constructors has warned of more layoffs unless the National Department of Infrastructure and Transport (DNIT) starts paying its contractors. Jose Alberto Pereira Ribeiro, president of ANEOR – National Association of Road Works - said companies already have been forced to lay off around 1,700 workers in light of non-payment by the government. Another 950 employees are on forced holidays. Ribeiro claimed DNIT failed to meet its financial obligations for September

IJM, one of Malaysia’s largest construction conglomerates, has bailed out of a deal to buy the highways concession business SILK. SILK Holdings, owner of the subsidiary SILK, Sistem Lingkaran-Lebuhraya Kajang, and IJM agreed to end the US$118 million takeover deal that was announced in June, the Sun newspaper reported. SILK holds the concession for the 37km Kajang Traffic Dispersal Ring Road, also called the Silk Highway, until 2037. The road opened in 2004. IJM noted in June, in its filing of intention

Financial close has been reached for expansion of the A9 motorway near Amsterdam in the Netherlands. BNG Bank, DZ BANK, ING, KBC, SMBC and Société Général have made available a short-term debt of US$174 million (€140 million) and half of the long-term debt of nearly $509 million (€410 million). The European Investment Bank will provide the other half of the long-term debt. Mott MacDonald is the lenders’ technical advisor to the consortium IXAS Zuid-Oost, which has the public-private contract to expand

Serbia’s Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure has approved a merger between the public-owned roads companies Putevi Srbije (Roads of Serbia) and Koridori Srbije (Corridors of Serbia). Putevi Srbije maintains roads while Koridori focuses on construction planning and project management, including expropriation of land. The government said the merger will contribute to faster completion of projects such as stretches of Europe’s Corridor 10 and Corridor 11 road networks and hopefully red

The Topcon Positioning Group has acquired German console manufacturer Wachendorff Elektronik and its US subsidiary Wachendorff Electronics in a private transaction. Wachendorff Elektronik and Wachendorff Electronics are leading manufacturers of in-cabin mounted consoles for the industrial vehicle market in the agricultural and construction industries. Ray O’Connor, Topcon Positioning Group president and CEO said, “This acquisition is a key ingredient of our global strategy to strengthen our ability to serve

Kobelco Construction Machinery has posted its semi-annual results for the 2014 financial year. The results give grounds for caution as well as some optimism however. In the Japanese hydraulic excavator market, a significant decline was expected initially in response to the impact of last-minute demand in the previous financial year. However, the decline was less than expected owing to strong domestic demand. As a result, the total domestic demand for heavy hydraulic excavators in the first half decreased by

In Chile plans are well in hand for a series of major infrastructure projects, with the work likely to help boost the country’s economy. The Ministry of Public Works in Chile (MOP) has announced that it will speed up the process for key infrastructure construction projects. Those projects involving investments of around US$1.10 billion should be approved by 11th March 2015. The Ministry of Public Works has indicated that three private concession contracts have already been approved, including the dual-carri

Algeria’s national motorway agency (ANA) has revealed that the cost of the East-West motorway amounted to US$13 billion rather than the $12 billion originally planned. The cost of maintenance is between $23.65 million and $35.5 million/year. Before the end of 2015, road information signs providing real time information are expected to be set up. In all, 48 tollbooths and 22 maintenance and operation centres are already in place. The cost of the tolls have yet to be set. Meanwhile, the construction of a 120k