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Interest is strong in the project to complete Colombia’s key tunnel construction contract. In all 23 firms have shown interest in the package of works to complete the La Linea tunnel project, according to the Colombian national road institute (Invias). The Colombian Government is providing US$204.5 million to complete the project. The current target is for the tunnel to be completed by 2020, although the link was originally supposed to be ready for traffic in late 2016. Construction work on the link commenc

Several major road projects are underway in Paraguay at present, though issues are afflicting some. Although the Rute del Este consortium comprising Sacyr, Mota Engil and Ocho A was awarded the PPP contract to upgrade Ruta 2 and Ruta 7, the necessary funding has yet to be delivered. The Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) and the US Bank have both said that they would give the necessary funding. A new deadline has been set for the funds to be delivered at the end of March 2019. Meanwhile there are also d

Puerto Rico is setting out plans for its road repair programme, which is intended to upgrade links right across the island.

A new highway is to be built in North Korea, connecting Hamhung with Wonsan. The 112km highway project is being split into five sections for the tender process, which is being handled by a Chinese firm. Funding is being supplied by China for the project. Construction is expected to start in the second quarter of 2019, with the completion date set for the second quarter of 2022. The project does face a number of challenges however, not the least of which is how equipment will be provided for the work give th

China has set out a programme of works intended to boost rural road connectivity in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Some 4,500km of roads will be either built or improved as part of the plan. The aim of the work is to link all of the region’s towns and villages to the road network by the end of 2019. This is the continuation of a plan to improve transport in the region, boosting economic activity. In 2018 34 towns and 533 villages were connected to the road network by links surfaced wither with asphalt or conc

Hlidac Statu, the Czech government spending watchdog, criticised the slow pace of motorway construction, saying it lags behind other EU states in the eastern region. But Czech prime minister Andrej Babis hit back, saying that his government has overseen an unprecedented level of motorway construction and investment. Radio Praha reported that Michal Bláha, founder of the watchdog, said data from Eurostat shows that only 300km of new motorway has been built in the Czech republic since 2000. Eurostat, ba

Work has started on a 5km extension, including a 1.1kkm tunnel under the Weser River, to Germany’s A281 motorway. The project around the northwestern city of Bremen will connect the A281 with the A27 by 2024 and cost around €345 million. Bremen will contribute €1 million.

Almost €348 million will be needed for a 32km extension to Poland’s A2 motorway from Biala Podlaska to Terespol, near the border with Belarussia. A tender for a design and build contract is expected to be called in 2020. But funding is still not for certain under the National Road Construction Programme that looks at work until 2023. Recently, a €1.3 million contract was signed with Multiconsult Polska to prepare an investment plan. The A2 runs from west to east through central Poland, from the Pol

Construction work on the planned tunnel for the Polish islands of Uznam and Wolin will commence in 2021. The islands lie on Poland’s Baltic Coast and this €184 million tunnel project is intended to improve transport connections in the area. The ferries used at present are ageing and are no longer able to cope adequately with the number of vehicles using the crossing. Up to 11,000 vehicles/day make the crossing during peak summer months, with around 2 million vehicles/year making the trip by ferry at present

A new proposal for congestion charging in Los Angeles has been put forward as a possible solution to the city’s traffic woes. The CEO of the Los Angeles Metro system has suggested that a congestion charge for drivers could be used to allow riders to use the city’s transit system for free. Under the proposed scheme, drivers would be charged for entering certain districts of the city at peak travel periods. The proposal has been put forward as a way of smoothing out transport ahead of the 2028 Olympic Games.