News

A series of major road projects in Guatemala now look set to go ahead. A US$340 million loan from the Brazilian National Development Bank (BNDES) will most likely fund work to widen the 131km Mayuelas-Puerto Santo Tomas de Castilla route to four lanes. A final decision on the financial package required for this project is due in September 2014. Meanwhile the tender process is opening for a 100km stretch of road running through El Rancho, San Agustin Acasaguastlan, El Progreso to Mayuelas, Gualan, Zacapa. Th

Successful talks have been held between Chile and Argentina regarding the planned Agua Negra road tunnel that will link the two countries. Further talks will be carried out with regard to financing the project but these look set to be completed towards the end of August 2014, according to a report from Business News Americas. One option is for Argentina’s Government to pay for the construction with the costs being recovered through tolling but other financing solutions have also been discussed. The Agua Neg

Plans are moving forward in Paraguay for several key projects. The Costanera II road project will be put out to tender at the end of 2014. The project is likely to cost in the region of $100 million. Also due to go out to tender is the project for a new bridge linking Paraguay with neighbouring Brazil, which is expected to cost some $172 million. And in a loan of $134 million will pay for improvements to the Pilar-Alberdi road, costing $120 million, and the Puente Remanso Castillo-Puerto Falcon road in Para

A new report from research group Frost & Sullivan suggests that the market In North America and Europe for road-markings, coatings and paints in transportation will grow to US$2.61 billion by 2020. The study is the Strategic Analysis of Road-marking and Traffic Paints and Coatings Market in North America and Europe. One key finding is that demand for water-based coatings is increasing in the US. Governments in the US and Europe are to launch initiatives to expand road infrastructure and develop durable mate

Preparation work for the access roads to Nigeria’s new Niger River crossing has now commenced. Construction of the bridge itself looks likely to commence in 2015 and this long delayed project has been the subject of much scrutiny and comment within Nigeria. Contractor Julius Berger has the concession for the US$700 million bridge, which will carry both road and rail links. The site of the new bridge is close to the commercial city of Onitsha, which is a major transport hub for Nigeria. High volumes of throu

A report from South Korea highlights the country’s high road crash rate. Produced jointly by the Korea Insurance Development Institute and the General Insurance Association of Korea, the report reveals an increase in road crashes over the last three years. The report compared the crash rate for period from July to August 2014 against the same time period for the preceding years, revealing an increase in crashes of 5.6% for the time slot in focus. According to the report, the number of highway crashes increa

Infrastructure in Indonesia looks set to benefit from a series of a key highway and bridge projects, now gathering momentum. The country’s State Enterprises Ministry has announced plans for new road building worth a colossal US$25.66 billion. Work on a key highway stretch will commence in September 2014. This highway will connect provinces across the island of Sumatra, with the project looking set to be handled by the state-run firm Hutama Karya. The Indonesian Government has granted Bengkulu $1.22 billion

Japan’s National Police Agency reports an improvement in road safety for the first half of 2014. The report highlights a drop in road related fatalities to 1,925 for the first six months of 2014, a fall of 79 compared with the same period for the previous year. Of those killed in road crashes during the first six months of 2014, a worrying 995 were aged 65 or older. Meanwhile, the number of people injured in road accidents reached 342,656. There were 277,591 road crashes in Japan during the first six months

The project to construct a connecting road between the South Luzon and North Luzon expressways in the Philippines now looks set to be delayed. The US$409 million contract previously awarded to a joint venture comprising Philippine National Construction Corp (PNCC) and Metro Pacific Investments Corp (MPIC), has been withdrawn for unspecified reasons. The country’s Department of Public Works and Highways says that the contract has been returned to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) for new

Construction work on the Lajkovac-Ljig and Obrenovac-Ub sections of Serbia’s Corridor 10 highway are said to be on-track. The stretch will be completed by April 2017 and when the section opens to traffic, it will help reduce journey times with the drive from Belgrade to Zlatibor taking just 90 minutes. He said that delays on the road are not expected. The project value has not been disclosed.

In Portugul official road safety statistics show a continuing improvement. The country’s Road Safety Authority (ANSR) has reported that between January and July 2014, fatalities from car crashes dropped 17% to 254 compared with the same period in 2013. There were recorded 65,291 car crashes in Portugal within January and July 2014, which resulted serious injuries to 1,117 and minor injuries in 19,150.

Work is starting on a new bridge that will span the Zambezi River and link Zambia with Botswana. The bridge will be located at Kazungula and will carry both road and rail connections. The structure will be some 923m long and the project is expected to cost in the region of US$200 million, with work including the construction of access roads as well as the border posts on either side of the Zambezi River. This new link will replace the existing ferry connection, improving transportation between Zambia and Bo

Plans are moving forward for two key highway projects in Poland. The Polish General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA) says that the best offer for the construction of the Rzeszow - Jaroslaw section of the A4 highway has been submitted by a consortium comprising contractors Budimex and Strabag. The deal is worth some €170.63 million. Meanwhile Italian construction company Astaldi has signed a contract worth €103.23 million with GDDKiA for the S8 dual carriageway. The section of road will

Thailand is setting out plans for a major development of its transport network. The country’s government has been discussing plans for five special economic zones, as well as the new transport links that will connect these areas. The five special economic zones have been proposed in Trat, Tak, Songkhla, Mukdahan and Aranyaprathet. For Songkhla's Padang Besar and Sadao customs checkpoints, a 64km highway project costing some US$743.85 million is being considered that will run from the Malaysian border in Sad