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Malaysia’s Lebuh Raya Pantai Timur 2 (LPT2), highway is expected to open for traffic by September 2014. A series of delays have held back work on the 184km highway, although the 72km Bukit Besi-Kuala Terengganu section has been open since the third quarter of 2011. Some of the delays can be attributed to price increases in the cost of materials, which caused problems for contractors involved with the project. Work is ongoing at present on the section of highway from Bukit Mempusi-Kemamn's Felda Kerteh 6. Me

A novel online training platform has been developed for the road sector by the Spanish Road Association (AEC). This move follows research suggesting a demand for online training tools in the road infrastructure sector. The www.aecarreteraformacion.com website is said to have an extensive array of training tools suitable for road professionals in Spain as well as in Latin America. The AEC platform has been developed with an international focus, and is intended to meet the demands of road technicians and mana

A new report from the US-based Freedonia Group suggests that China’s expenditure on construction will grow at around 8.5%/year until 2017. This will follow demand due to increasing urbanisation and industrialisation, as well as rising income levels. The continued investment by the Chinese Government in infrastructure will be another major factor in the growth in construction spending. But growth will be more moderate than the 16%/year seen during the 2007-2012 period. The Chinese Government had a stimulus p

Even as work continues on La Linea tunnel in Colombia, the country’s government has received a proposal for an additional tunnel link. A consortium made up of Colombian companies and Italian firms has suggested building a new tunnel to link Quindio and Tolima. Odinsa, Mincivil, Impregilo and Salini are involved in the consortium and have suggested a PPP as being a possible model under which to construct the link, which could cost in the order of US$531 million and would be 8.5km long. The economic case for

A feasibility study worth US$199 million will be carried out for the planned Sunda Straits Bridge in Indonesia. The bridge itself is expected to cost close to $20 billion to construct. It will be of major economic importance for Indonesia by providing a direct road link between the islands of Sumatra and Java. The link will connect Sumatra directly to Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, and the bridge is expected to be 27km long in all. The Sunda Straits Bridge will actually be a series of links connecting the sm

Shaanxi province in China saw a US$1.34 billion (CNY 8.20bn) investment in highway projects in the first six months of 2013, representing 58.6% of the total planned investment of $2.26 billion (CNY 14bn) for the whole of 2013. This year, Shaanxi province authorities aim to start seven highway projects stretching over 565km and continue the construction of nine highways with a total length of 559km.

The project to replace the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is taking too long and is going over budget, according to California state officials. The officials claim US$1.28 billion had been spent for the replacement of the damaged eastern span by 2004, with the cost continue going up. A projected $20 million repair was announced on 10 July 2013 after the failure of 32 steel rods in stress tests. The 3.54km structure has yet to be completed after nearly 10 years. Cost projection has increased to roughly $6.

The Guatemalan government has recently announced that the Inter-Oceanic corridor project, involving a four-lane motorway, a railway, two ports and industrial parks, is of national and public interest, as it will allow the country to position itself strategically for global trade. Such a large scale project is expected to attract foreign investment, create new jobs and enlarge government coffers in terms of taxes. Infrastructure investments of US$ 7 billion- $8 billion have been calculated. The first interna

According to consultancy firm Nippon Koei, Paraguay needs about US$5 billion to modernise all its local transport system over a period of ten years, encompassing roads, railway and air. Road projects worth $2.21 billion are currently being carried out using government funds. Remaining investments for road infrastructure have been calculated by Nippon Koei at $1.6 billion from Public-Private Partnerships, followed by $374 million from private funds, and public funds ($1.05 billion). About 15% of roads are in

The US$2.6 billion, 30-year municipal bonds issued to pay for the longest traffic beltway in America are reported to be priced cheaper at around $97, with a higher yield of 5.15%. Bloomberg claims the bonds for the Grand Parkway in Houston – a 290km (180 miles) road circling the city - could have been sold by the Texas Department of Transportation during a much healthier market period from as early as April this year. Also known as Texas State Highway 99, the Grand Parkway opened its first section in 1994.

Costain has won an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) contract to improve the A160, from the junction with the A180 at Brocklesby Interchange to the Port of Immingham, near Grimsby, north Lincolnshire, England. The project design aims to reduce traffic congestion and improve journey time reliability to meet the needs of current traffic flows and predicted growth in traffic resulting from existing and future developments. The project also seeks to improve safety for road users and the local community. Works

The CEA (Construction Equipment Association) is busy finalising its ‘Money, Markets and Machines’ conference mapping the future of the Construction Equipment industry. As with all the previous CEA conferences, a number of key speakers from the construction and related industries will be sharing their business experiences with like-minded delegates, which include professionals from construction equipment manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, and other associated organisations.

In Indonesia the country’s government intends to speed up preparations for the massive Trans Sumatra tollroad project. This 2,700km highway link is costing close to US$30 billion and much of the work will be carried out by the state-owned contractor, Hutama Kaya. Construction will commence in late-September 2013 and the project is scheduled to be fully open by 2025. This highway will connect all 10 provinces in Sumatra Island through Aceh-Lampung. Phase one of the project is for the construction of four sec

Work on the Taveta-Voi road link connecting Kenya and Tanzania is now being planned. The African Development Bank is providing a loan worth US$113 million. The work includes widening and improving a 42km bypass at Arusha and upgrades to a 115km section of road between Holili and Arusha. This package of works is due for completion by 2018. The Kenyan Government is itself funding upgrades to a 24km section of road running from Voi-Mwatate. Many of the existing links between Kenya and Tanzania are in poor cond

UK employers, especially those with staff who drive for work, are being urged to sign up now to take part in this year's national Road Safety Week. Safety-conscious company bosses who answer the sign-up call will receive free action pack to help them promote life-saving messages to staff and the wider community. The call-out comes shortly after new UK government and police statistics revealed five people are killed and 63 are seriously injured every day on UK roads. One in four serious road casualties are i