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Work is underway on the third stage of Colombia’s Bogota-Villavicencio road project. This 24km project is being carried out under the PPP model by the concession holder, Concesionaria Vial Andina (Coviandina). The project is complex and includes the construction of seven tunnels in all, which have a total length of 10.7km, as well as 21 bridges and overpasses measuring 3.8km in all. Coviandina has bored around 930m of the total tunnel length at present.

Tendering is being opened out for a new dual carriageway connection in Argentina, located just to the south of Mendoza. The 25km link will provide an improved link between Route 7 and Route 40, joining the towns of Palmira and Agrelo. The project is expected to cost close to US$151 million, with financing being provided by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). The new dual carriageway will reduce journey times between Palmira and Agrelo.

A major upgrade is planned to the road connecting Zambia with the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The 321km road link will be upgraded to dual carriageway status between Zambia’s capital, Lusaka, and the city of Ndola, which lies close to the border with the DRC. The upgraded route will also run through Kabwe, while improving the connections to Zambia’s copper producing area situated around Ndola.

A slight improvement in road safety has been seen in Kenya for the January to September 2017 period compared with the figures for the same months during 2016. There were 1,919 reported road deaths during January to September 2017 compared with 2,078 reported fatalities in January to September 2016. The number of drivers killed in crashes during January to September 2017 dropped to 212 while the number of pedestrians killed in road crashes during this period dropped to 714.

Plans have been drawn up in the Philippines for Cavite-Tagaytay-Batangas Expressway (CTBEx) project. The Metro Pacific Group submitted its proposals for the expressway to the Department of Public Works and Highways. The US$440.2 million expressway will improve the link from Cavite to Nasugbu and Tagaytay. The Metro Pacific Group hopes to receive the necessary approvals for the project by the end of 2017.

Australia pays a heavy penalty for road crashes, according to a report by the Australian Automobile Association (AAA). In addition to the personal tragedy involved, road crashes cost Australia’s economy a loss of US$23.93 billion (A$29.7 billion) in 2015 according to the AAA. The number of road crashes in Australia climbed 4% between 2006 and 2015 and reached 679,359. However road fatalities dropped by around 25% to 1,205 between 2006 and 2015.

German firm Hochtief will see its Australian subsidiary CPB Contractors carry out a US$294 million (A$365 million) project on a stretch of Australia’s Pacific Highway. The package of works involves widening and upgrading a 34km section of the highway, with construction now starting and due for completion during 2020. The improved route will be widened so that it has four lanes, with two in either direction and will offer increased capacity as well as better safety for drivers.

Funding from Japan now looks likely to help pay for a highway project in Tanzania. The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is planning to offer US$1.4 billion for Tanzania’s New Bagamoyo Highway road project. The deal has yet to be finalised, but construction work should commence in June 2018, should all go to plan. Once the work starts, this will improve the connection between Mwenge and the Kawawa intersection.

India’s road fatality rate saw an increase during 2016 compared with the previous year. There were around 150,000 road deaths reported in India during 2016, an increase of 3.2% from the previous year. The number of road crashes did fall however by 4.1% to 480,000. Uttar Pradesh State saw the biggest increase in road crash deaths, which grew by 12.8% in 2016. Tamil Nadu State saw an 11.4% increase in road deaths while Maharashtra State saw an increase in road fatalities of 8.6% in 2016.

Panama has postponed the tender process for the fourth bridge crossing over the Panama Canal. This is the fourth time the fourth bridge crossing tender has been postponed. Panama’s Ministry of Public Works (MOP) opted to postpone the tender due to changes in the guidelines. The bridge will have six lanes for motor vehicles as well as twin tracks for metro rail and is expected to cost US$1 billion to construct.