Road Structures

A key agreement between the Sudanese Government and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will see a new bridge being built in South Sudan. The US$90 million bridge will measure 560m long and will span the River Nile. A seven month feasibility study has already been carried out into the project for Sudan’s road and bridges ministry and construction is expected to take three years to complete. JICA has agreed to give technical assistance although it is not clear at this stage whether funding will

Plans are in hand for a new road tunnel project at Kunming City in China’s Yunnan Province. The Kunming Transportation Bureau has signed a deal with Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co for the underwater tunnel and expressway project, which is worth US$1.31 billion. The project will be constructed on a build-operate-transfer basis. The new link will have a designed speed of 80km/h for the underground section and 100km/h for the sections on surface. The 25km project has been approved by the provincial development

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's (EBRD) board of directors has approved a US$260.56m loan for the construction of the central section of the Western High-Speed Diameter (WHSD) in St Petersburg by 2014. Magistral Severnoy Stolitsy (MSS) consortium must invest at least ROUBLE82.86billion (US$2.61billion) in the 11.5km stretch of mostly eight-lane motorway.

Atlas Copco plans to acquire the underground equipment business of GIA Industri, which will widen its array of machines for the tunneling market. Swedish firm GIA Industri makes an array of specialist machines for underground use including electric haulage trucks, utility vehicles and ventilation systems.

The official reopening of a bridge badly damaged in the Cumbria floods has taken place. Bouthrey bridge, just off the A5084 between Water Yeat and Nibthwaite in South Lakeland, was severely damaged by the some of the heaviest rainfall ever recorded in England in November 2009. A temporary bridge was constructed as an interim measure and work began on repairing the main bridge.

The last two tenders for Israel’s Road 531 project are now being published by the Israel National Roads Company. The tenders will form part of one of the largest single infrastructure projects ever planned in Israel. These two are for a complex series of works including a three storey interchange, underground crossings for railways and roads and relocation of the coastal line for Israel Railways. Also included in the works are the construction of two large water pumping stations and a series of paths for pe

A new tunnel project to connect Montreal with St Lambert has been proposed by a Canadian entrepreneur. The tunnel would run under the St Lawrence Seaway and was proposed by property magnate Luc Poirier as a possible solution to traffic congestion.

Long An province in Vietnam will see US$2.77billion spent on constructing and improving its inner waterway and road infrastructure over the next eight years. The provincial peoples’ committee (PPC) revealed that the major capital project will include the construction of bridges and roads linking central areas and towns. The new roads will stretch around 400km and new dredge waterways will span 600km on the Chanh, Thu Thua, Bac Dong and Tra Cu canals by 2015. Small wharves and Long An Port will also be estab

In Taiwan Hua Chi Construction will build the planned Kinmen Bridge. This 5.4km structure will connect Lesser Kinmen with Greater Kinmen and is due for completion in 2016. Construction work will commence in May 2012. The contractor’s winning bid was for US222.2 million. The details of the project have been released by the National Expressway Engineering Bureau.

Discussions are underway in Switzerland at present over options for maintaining and upgrading the Gotthard Road Tunnel in the 2020-2025 period. One option is likely to cost some €539.65 million (CHF 650 million), requiring the tunnel to be closed for a 30 month period. The other, is likely to cost €752 million and will see the work carried out the necessary work in stages over a 42 month stretch. For this second option, the tunnel would remain open during the summer period so as to allow it to carry the hig