Road Structures

In Saudi Arabia the go-ahead has been given for a new expressway that will connect Qassim with Makkah. The project is worth some US$1.2 billion and will include the construction of service facilities along the route. Details regarding the tender process or any technical features of the project have yet to be revealed.

The Nepalese Government has announced a major programme of transport infrastructure works for the 2014-2015 period. Road, highway and airport projects have all been prioritised. The detailed project report for the Kathmandu-Tarai Fast Track Road is to be completed within six months. The proposal aims to attract investors by guaranteeing a minimum number of vehicles using the tolled link. The project has been delayed due funding issues. This period will also see work being carried out the Mid-Hills Highway,

In Denmark the Ministry of Transport has presented a proposal for hearing concerning a major new bridge link. The proposed structure would cross the Roskilde Fjord south of Frederikssund, partly replacing the existing Kronprins Frederik Bridge. The project is expected to cost €281.62 million, with partial financing from the Infrastructure Fund (Infrastrukturfonden). The rest will be sourced through road tolls. The Danish Construction Association has said that the project should also include the completion o

A consortium comprising local contractor Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (Cienco 4) and Japanese company Sumitomo Mitsui will carry out construction work on Vietnam’s new Ben Luc-Long Thanh expressway. This is the first package for the first phase of works on the expressway, with this tranche expected to cost in the region of US$1.6 billion. Vietnam’s Government is providing $337 million of the funding required. Some $635 million is coming in the shape of a loan from the Japan International Co-op

A colossal road construction plan has been revealed by China’s Yunnan Province. The authorities have revealed that the new infrastructure programme calls for the addition of a further 1,500km of highways. To achieve this, a budget of some US$24.17 billion has been set for the 2014-2015 period. With this road development programme in place the authorities have estimated that by the end of 2015 the province will have a highway network comprising some 4,500km in total.

A series of major road construction projects are underway in Colombia at present. The country’s national roads institute, Invias, is currently investing in excess of US$646 million on an array of road projects at the moment. One key project is for the construction of a new highway connecting Loboguerrero and Buenaventura. Another important project is for the construction of a new bridge connecting Buenaventura with Cascajal Island, which is due for completion in the second half of this year.

Mexico’s road development programme for 2014 is well on track. According to the Secretariat of Communications and Transport in (SCT), some 92% of the budget set for road projects in 2014 has already been implemented. The SCT is now moving forward with its plans for road projects in 2015. The tender process for major contracts will be opening from mid-November 2014. A budget of some US$1.92 billion is being planned for road projects in 2015, a significant increase from the $1.15 billion set for 2014. The fir

Work is now to go ahead on upgrading a key stretch of the A21 road in the UK. Contractor Balfour Beatty will handle the work to widen a stretch of the A21 between Tonbridge and Pembury and also improve the road, with it becoming a dual carriageway. The €87.55 million (£69.7 million) scheme forms part of a plan by the UK Government for a series of road improvements of €30.15 billion (£24 billion) by 2021. Advance work is expected to start in the third quarter of this year with the main construction activity

A consortium of contractors comprising Teixeira Duarte and EPOS will handle the construction of Portugal’s Marao Tunnel. The consortium won the tender with a bid of €88.1 million. The tunnel will measure 5.9km long when complete. Separate deals for other sections of the route have also been awarded. The section at Amarante will be handled by Opway, which offered a €29.5 million bid. A consortium comprising contractors Ferrovial and Lena will handle the Vila real section, having offered a bid of €28.8 millio

A major programme of highway investment is being planned in India. The country's Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved US$2.34 billion of works project to widen 676km of national highways (NHs) in Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Kerala, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. The highways to be four-laned are the 27km Kazahakkottum-Mukkola section of the National Highway (NH) 47 in Kerala, the 95km section of the NH65 from Ambala-Kaithal in Haryana, and the 99km section of the NH 163 from Yadgiri-Warangal i