Road Structures

The tender process is commencing for the Américo Vespucio Oriente expressway (AVO) in Chilean capital Santiago. The US$940 million tender is due to be awarded in February 2014. The 9km highway link will connect El Salto with Príncipe de Gales Avenue and will feature three lanes running in either direction, with a design speed of 80-100km/h. An underground section of this urban highway looks likely to be constructed using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM) while it may also include a section in an ope

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 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

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