News

Software specialist Transoft Solutions is completing its acquisition of Simtra AeroTech. The deal is of significance and Transoft Solutions is a major player in the market for transportation engineering design solutions. Meanwhile Simtra AeroTech is a leading supplier of software for airport and road designers. Both companies are pioneers in the transportation industry with CAD based software solutions such as AutoTURN and AeroTURN (Transoft Solutions) and PathPlanner (Simtra). Located in Gothenburg, Sweden

The tender process is opening for a highway project in Brazil's southern Paraná State. The project will be carried out under the PPP model and the deal is worth some US$3.21 billion. The package of works necessary will require widening, improving, maintaining and operating state highway PR-323 as well as a number of adjacent roads. The package is for a 30-year concession and involves widening 207km of highway between the towns of Paiçandu and Francisco Alves in the northeast of the state, according to a rep

The Conexpo 2014 exhibition is launching its Innovation Awards programme to recognise the best product innovation and engineering. The winners are to be announced at the show and industry participants are being invited to vote online. The awards are intended to spotlight the achievements of show exhibitors in the areas of earthmoving, lifting, road building, compaction and concrete. Industry professionals can vote online to determine the winners. Voters who register have the chance to win a new Microsoft Su

Official data from Hunan Province, Hubei Province and Fujian Province in China reveal major infrastructure investment plans. Hunan Province will invest US$10.92 billion (CNY 66 billion) on transportation in 2014. Construction work will commence on more than 10 highways with a total length of 600km in 2014. Highway projects will account for $6.45 billion (CNY 39 billion) of the total investment. Hunan's rural road developments will involve an investment of $1.24 billion (CNY 7.5 billion) and a total length o

Plans are in hand in Namibia for widening work to a road close to capital Windhoek. The road is being upgraded to dual carriageway status and the work is expected to reduce travel times and improve safety along the route, reducing the risk of head-on collisions. The road being improved carries up to 6,500 vehicles/day and stretches from a bridge at Dobra to the Windhoek-Okahandja route. The widening work is being carried out by Grinaker-LTA and includes building a number of pedestrian bridges and installing

The tender process is being opened for a new PPP road project for the island of Aruba. The Watty Vos Boulevard tender will be under the design, build, finance and maintain model, set out under a 22 year package by Aruba’s Government. The tender process is open to local and international contractors and consultants. The total cost of the project is estimated at around US$120 million. The work involves rebuilding some 7km of road along a 17km stretch as well as upgrading 12 intersections and building two over

Contractor China Roads and Bridges is building a new bridge link in Mozambique as part of a project worth some US$725 million. The contractor is also building the new ring road around Mozambique’s capital Maputo in a deal worth some $315 million, with the work due for completion by the end of 2014. The project for the Maputo-Catembe River Bridge also includes construction of road connections to Ponte do Ouro.

Construction work is underway on a key bridge connection in Vietnam. The Cao Lanh Bridge is located in Vietnam’s Dong Thap Province and its construction is costing an estimated US$145 million.

The International Transport Forum (ITF) has published a new report on how better regulated Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) can improve funding and delivery of transport infrastructure. The ITF highlights how PPPs have become an important tool for governments to attract private finance for infrastructure investments. In the face of tight budgets, PPPs are seen as a means to maintain transport investment and limit public spending at the same time.

A road construction contract worth US$1.07 billion has been awarded to China Railway Construction in Nigeria. The Ministry of Delta Affairs of Nigeria awarded the package of works for Section V of the A121 East-West highway to China Civil Engineering Construction, a division of China Railway Construction.

The authorities in Russia’s Urals region are approving a programme that will see major investment in infrastructure. Some US$3.91 billion will be invested in roads as well as communications, and information technologies between the present and 2020. The transport plans will see 225.4km of roads being rebuilt and improved as well as works to repair and maintain 27 bridges.

The value of construction projects in the UK has shot up by 67.1% in the last year, according to a new report. New project contracts awarded in December 2013 totalled €7.31 billion (£6 billion), compared to €4.38 billion (£3.6 billion) in the same month in 2012. The infrastructure sector proved to be an area of significant growth last month, with the total value of projects awarded reaching €2.68 billion (£2.2 billion), a 10.6% increase from November 2013 and a huge 101.6% year-on-year growth.

In Japan, operators of West Nippon Expressway, Central Nippon Expressway and East Nippon Expressway are planning to spend around US$28.86 billion (JPY 3.02 trillion) to renovate ageing tunnels and bridges on their roads. The expressway operators will be renovating around 2,110km of the combined 9,000km of expressways that they operate. This will include large scale renovations on about 1,870km of expressways, such as reinforcing tunnel foundations. The three operators will also renew about 240km of bridges