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A major highway project in the US state of Vriginia has been awarded to a joint venture team comprising Granite Construction, Parsons Corporation, and Corman Construction. The firms will handle the Interstate 64 (I-64) Southside Widening and High Rise Bridge, Phase 1 design-build contract, which was awarded by the Virginia Department of Transportation. Construction work for the US$410 million joint venture project is scheduled to commence in November 2017 and should be completed in July 2021.

Michelin is now offering new tyres aimed at the rigid truck market. Called the XTRA LOAD GRIP and XTRA LOAD PROTECT, these 24.00 R35 sizes are part of the new MICHELIN XTRA LOAD range. This offering is said to allow users to increase load capacity or increase travel speeds to maximise productivity. The XTRA LOAD GRIP version is for use in soft, loose, muddy ground conditions where the priority is high grip and traction. Due to a reinforced casing, the tyre has a 16% higher payload. And the increased grip

Ferrovial’s subsidiary Cintra is part of a joint venture that has been selected as preferred respondent for the Western Roads Upgrade project in western Melbourne. The State of Victoria awarded the deal to Netflow, a joint venture between Plenary and Cintra with a focus on road projects in Australia and New Zealand. The win includes Ferrovial subsidiaries Broadspectrum and Amey taking charge of maintenance on the project worth nearly US$1.4 billion. The overall contract is for the design, construction and

A new highway is planned in Bangladesh that will improve transport links to Dhaka’s airport. The route will run between Ashulia on the north-eastern side of the Bangladesh capital and Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. The construction project is intended to boost trade and transport and is expected to cost US$2.06 billion. The Bangladesh Government is giving its approval for the project and will provide $725.3 million of the financing required from its own budget.

Brazil’s anti-corruption drive continues, with the country’s Federal Police now carrying out investigations into a series of road projects across the country. So far the investigations have seen police action being taken in four states across the country, including search and seizure operations. The investigations are focussing on issues such as whether bribes have been paid to secure contracts or whether fraud surrounds a number of loans. Concern that funds intended for road maintenance, repairs or

A new bypass project in the Philippines will benefit from funding being supplied by Japan. The Bulacan Bypass project will be located on Luzon Island and will improve transport connections to and from the Bulacan area, lying to the northeast of the capital Manila. The new bypass road will connect Central Luzon to Metro Manila. Once the route is open to traffic, it is expected to improve journey times and cut congestion for drivers. The complete financing package has yet to be agreed between the two

Vietnam’s Belt Road Three project is being planned at present, with some of the financing still being sought. The route will run between Tan Van District and Nhon Trach District, crossing the Dong Nai River. The project is expected to cost US$2.46 billion to construct and will feature four lanes initially, with additional lanes being built in future phases. The 89.3km route has been approved and runs through the provinces of Binh Duong, Dong Nai and Long An, as well as through the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh

Construction work on Russia’s Frunzensky Bridge is now well under way. The bridge spans the Samara River, a tributary of the Volga River and was originally planned for completion by 2018. The construction company Stroytransgaz has a US$213.5 million contract to finish the project and the bridge is now expected to be ready for traffic by 2020. The bridge project did face challenges from insufficient funding and cost increases but the necessary financing package is now in place. When complete the bridge is in

The preparatory work is underway for a stretch of the Ipswich Motorway widening project in Queensland Australia. The project is worth around US$318.6 million (A$400 million). This first section of the widening work is 3km long and runs from Granard Road at Rocklea to the Oxley roundabout. The work involves widening the route from four lanes at present to six lanes and improving seven bridges, which includes increasing the height of the bridge over Oxley Creek. The 10km widening project is intended to reduce

India is setting out ambitious plans to further develop its infrastructure, with a renewed focus on the north east of the country. A budget of US$22.35 billion has been set out by the Indian Government for infrastructure projects, for which highway construction will play a major part. The states in line for this infrastructure development are: Arunachal, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Pradesh and Sikkim. Details of the individual projects being planned have yet to be released however.