News

Design work starts on Inverness West Link Road Project
October 9, 2012
The Highland Council in northern Scotland has appointed Capita Symonds to assist the Council’s Project Design Unit in providing detailed design civil engineering and supporting services for the new US $ 43.85 million (£27.2mn) Inverness West Link Road. The scheme will be completed in two phases – a year-long first phase which will involve developing a detailed design which will allow The Highland Council to subdivide the project into two construction stages, clearly define the layouts and footprints for the
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Vietnam Government seeks investors for US$ 2.68bn elevated highways
October 9, 2012
The Vietnamese Government is seeking investors to support the construction of four 34.5km elevated highways valued at a combined US $ 2.68 billion in Ho Chi Minh City. Prime Minister and the Ministry of Transport are said to be tweaking the project, agreed by Government in 2007, in a bid to lure its first investors.
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World Bank providing loan for key Kenyan roads
October 9, 2012
The World Bank is offering the Kenyan Government a loan worth nearly US$300 million to fund road projects. The lion’s share of the money will be used to construct a double decker road link in Kenyan capital Nairobi. The 30 year repayment loan will also feature a grace period of 10 years. The Kenyan Government will contribute a small sum to the project and will also be in charge of the tender process.
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New safety project to protect European motorcyclists
October 9, 2012
A novel safety programme is being implemented that will benefit Europe’s motorcyclists. The RIDERSCAN programme is the European motorcycle safety scanning tour. The project is being co-funded by the European Union, gathering existing data on motorcycle safety in order to identify missing knowledge and information and provide guidance to road authorities. It brings together all road safety stakeholders involved in motorcycle safety to create a knowledge network, enhancing communication and fostering better c
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CBI calls for privatisation of UK’s major roads
October 8, 2012
A leading industry body is calling for the UK’s motorway and main road links to be privatised and tolled. According to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), introducing a plan for tolled roads and privatised motorways will be the only way to ensure these major links can be adequately funded in the future. By privatising some 1,600km of motorways, the CBI believes that there should be sufficient revenue for necessary repair and maintenance works. At present the UK’s Highways Agency faces a funding sho
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Highways Agency’s 57 road improvements set to give £3bn boost to UK economy
October 8, 2012
The Highways Agency is to deliver 57 vital road improvements said to equate to a near US $ 4.83 billion (£3bn) boost to the UK economy. The $ 274.25 million (£170mn) investment is part of a $ 350.07 million (£217) million programme to remove bottlenecks and keep traffic moving on England’s motorways and major A roads. Many of the improvements will be delivered in 2013 and 2014, and they will all be completed by March 2015. The announcement brings the total number of schemes to receive investment from the Go
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Seeing is Believing at highways innovation event
October 8, 2012
The latest highway industry products, systems and technologies will be on show at Seeing is Believing (SIB) next month. Speaking about the event in Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire between November 20-22 Steve Spender, IHE immediate past president & highways manager at Hampshire County Highways, said: “Seeing is Believing provides local authority highway engineers with a great opportunity to keep abreast of ever changing and improving materials and equipment. It provides an opportunity to see these being prac
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Chinese Government to spend US $ 4.45 billion on transport infrastructure in 2012
October 8, 2012
The Chinese Government is to spend US $4.45 billion on transport infrastructure in 2012. Of the total, $ 789.59 million will go on rural road improvements, of which 88% will be used in the central and western regions of the country. A further $ 789.59 million is being spent on expressway development, with western and central regions receiving $ 442.17 million and $ 221.08 million respectively.
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Drink driving challenge for Europe
October 8, 2012
In Europe there is a growing understanding that alcohol use amongst drivers still has to be tackled effectively. Accident data reveals that while safety standards are improving across most European countries, with steady reductions in numbers of serious injuries and fatalities, there remains a problem with alcohol use. In Spain in particular, there has been a major reduction in road casualty levels, but research into the accident data has shown that while the numbers of accidents has reduced overall, there
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Progress is being made with Serbia’s Corridor 11 highway project
October 8, 2012
Work is underway in Serbia for the Corridor 11 highway project and a number of local firms are now carrying out construction work on the Corridor 11 section from Ub to Lajkovac. Meanwhile Azvirt from Azerbaijan is preparing the Ljig to Preljina stretch of the highway, with the €300 million work being financed by Azerbaijan. The Serbian Government is asking China’s Exim Bank for a long term loan of €850 million, of which €300 million would be for the Corridor 11 project and €550 million would be for the Mora
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The tender process will open shortly in Bolivia for a key highway connection
October 8, 2012
A new road in Bolivia is planned to improve connections between Montero and Yapacani. A loan worth US$122 million for the project is being provided by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). Work on this four-lane road is being managed by Bolivia's road company ABC and the tender process is expected to open shortly. The 70km section of road will form part of the new Santa Cruz-Cochabamba highway. At present Bolivia's road network has a total length of 74,831km and this new highway project will help impr
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Successful focus event on Europe’s motorcycle safety
October 5, 2012
The European Motorcyclists' Forum at the INTERMOT fair in Cologne on October 3rd attracted a diverse audience ranging from motorcyclists and politicians to representatives of road authorities and the motorcycle industry. Organised by the Federation of European Motorcyclists Associations (FEMA), the event is a platform for discussion on safety, mobility and the future of two-wheel transport in Europe.
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Gulf Region spending US$ 121.3 billion on new road and bridge schemes
October 5, 2012
The Gulf region has bridge and road projects valued at US$ 121.3 billion in the planning stage or already ongoing. In Bahrain, there is $ 2 billion worth of road and bridge projects underway in various phases, and another $ 8 billion in Oman. In Kuwait, the government will be spending $9 billion for road projects in the coming two years, while road projects valued at $ 17 billion are said to be in ‘cruise control’ in Qatar as the country prepares for the 2022 Football World Cup.
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Drink and substance abuse for Nigeria’s commercial drivers
October 4, 2012
Worrying data has been revealed by a study of bus drivers in Nigeria’s mega-city and commercial centre, Lagos. The research revealed that 39% or 781 of the 2,002 bus drivers tested drive while under the influence of alcohol. Also revealed was the fact that 940 of the drivers have visual impairments, with 13% having been given special glasses. And 22% of the drivers, 441, tested positive for either marijuana or cocaine use (and in some instances both). In addition, 30% of the drivers (601) were revealed to b
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Financing arranged for new Indonesian toll road
October 4, 2012
A US$1.3 billion toll road project in Indonesia is being funded by a syndicate composed of various financial institutions. In all 22 banks or financial institutions are coming together to provide a loan worth $917 million for the new Cikampek-Palimanan toll road. Export-Import Bank of Malaysia (Exim Bank) is one of the banks involved and is providing $95 million in credit facilities to Lintas Marga Sedaya, which is working on the project. The majority stake in Lintas Marga Sedaya, 55%, is owned by PLUS Expr
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