News

A consortium comprising Vinci-Bouyges has a contract worth some US$1.63 billion for construction of a new coastal road in La Réunion. However the French firm Eiffage TP is contesting the deal and claims that the project cannot be carried by two major firms that have joined together to carry out the work. According to Eiffage TP, a consortium must be justified for either economic or technical reasons. The project is going ahead despite opposition from the National Council for the Protection of Nature (CNPN).

The American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) ARTBA is forecasting moderate growth in 2014 for the US transportation infrastructure market. According to ARTBA, the overall US transportation infrastructure construction market will grow five percent from US$129 billion this year to $135.8 billion in 2014. ARTBA’s chief economist, Dr Alison Premo Black, said the market would be led by expected double-digit growth in airport runway and terminal work and a 6% increase in bridge and tunnel const

A new agreement on funding has been struck between Ethiopia and the European Union. The deal will see the EU providing some US$ 287 million in the form of a development grant, to be used for an array of projects in the country. In all $66.56 million of the funding will be used for road construction, with the rest of the grant being aimed at improving health and protecting the country from drought.

Interest is strong in the project to build the 14km tunnel link between Chile and Argentina, with reports stating that 23 firms having expressed an interest in the work. The twin tube tunnel will connect Argentina’s San Juan Province with Chile’s Coquimbo Province (Region IV) and will be constructed in the Andes Mountains. The Agua Negra project is set to cost somewhere in the range from US$800 million to $1 billion, although the exact price of the project has yet to be determined. Some 72% of the link will

A group has united with a common aim, that roads must be maintained to save lives and money. The European Commission and national governments are being called upon to step‐up road maintenance standards by organisations, which represent consumers, road and vehicle industries, and safety bodies. The group comprises the Féderation International de l'Automobile (FIA), the European Road Federation (ERF), the International Road Transport Union (IRU) and the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), a

Kobelco is opening its new European headquarters at a location in the Netherlands. Kobelco Construction Machinery Europe (KCME) has based its new headquarters at Almere, in the Netherlands. The facility will become one of the strategic overseas bases for Kobelco’s further expansion. Located close to Amsterdam, this operation will provide access to European cities by air, sea or road. The headquarters will serve as Kobelco’s Sales and Marketing Centre, Technical Support, and Spare Parts Distribution Centre.

Japan’s Ministry of Transport is to scrap weekday daytime toll discounts on some of the country’s expressways from late March 2014 after a poll discovered that they were failing to relieve traffic jams. A 30% discount is currently available to drivers on non-Osaka, Tokyo and its neighbouring area toll expressways operated by Central Nippon Expressway, West Nippon Expressway and East Nippon Expressway from 9am to 5pm. State subsidies are also allowing operators to offer further expressway toll discount

A total of 9,159 people were caught driving without a licence in Belgium during 2012. This is well over double the 3,991 people found to be driving without a license in 2000. The figures include people who have never obtained a licence and those who are driving with a provisional license but failing to abide by the rule of the provisional licence. The fines imposed in Belgium for not having a licence vary from €1,200 to €12,000.

Construction of Vietnam’s US$1.4 billion Da Nang-Quang Ngai expressway is now underway. The near 140km-long expressway will have four lanes and a speed limit of 120km/hour. It will link economic hubs like Dung Quat (Quang Ngai), Da Nang-Chu Lai (Quang Nam) and Nhon Hoi (Binh Dinh). The expressway will also have a monitoring centre, a maintenance centre and a service centre. The Vietnamese government, the World Bank and the Japan International Co-operation Agency have provided official development assistan

The government of Oman has approved 13 road projects costing US$1.39 billion (OMR 535.5 million). Fidrichi Sterling and Larsen and Toubro (L&T) received deals worth $344.51 million (OMR 132.6 million) and $352.05 million (OMR 135.61 million) respectively to build the fifth and fourth package of Al Batinah Expressway. Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) won a $321.91 million (OMR 124 million) contract to build the 45km sixth package of the same key Expressway.

The Pennsylvania state Senate has approved a transport funding bill worth US$2.3 billion to restore ageing bridges and highways, and to improve mass transit throughout the U.S. state. The funding will be allocated for all transport modes, covering roads that cross rivers and streams, superhighways, gravel roads, seaports, airports, bike paths and rail lines. Of the total funding, $1.65 billion is set aside for repairing roads and bridges, while around $475 million is allocated for mass transit systems.

Colombia's fiscal policy council Confis has approved more than US$700 million of funding for the construction of the 31.8km road connecting Mulalo and Loboguerrero in Valle del Cauca. Following the fiscal approval, Treasury minister Mauricio Cardenas has given the green light to the project which will benefit over 147,000 people and create 4,773 jobs. In total, Confis has approved $2.75 billion (COP 5.3 trillion) for infrastructure projects. Some of the sum will also be invested in the connection between C

The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) is providing a US$400 million loan to Guatemala for rural road construction. This follows on from a $200 million loan being provided to Guatemala by the World Bank and a $237 million loan from the IADB. The Guatemalan Government is also working on upgrading CA9 Norte highway to make it reach Mayuelas completing an 89km extension at a cost of $240 million. The authorities also have plans to replace 60-70 bridges with new structures.