Features

The future financing of the European road network has again become a hot topic in Brussels On 15 October, 2010 in the Belgian capital, the Council of Transport Ministers hammered out a political compromise on the revision of the Eurovignette Directive that paves the way for the imposition of additional charges on road transport as a means of internalising externalities. Whether the imposition of these additional costs is justified or not remains the subject of protracted debate.

At its annual plenary meeting held on 25 May 2010, during the 16th IRF World Meeting in Lisbon, the European Road Federation (ERF) elected a new President in the person of Jacobo Díaz Pineda. Mr. Díaz Pineda has been the Director General of the Spanish Road Association (AEC) since September 2006, and is also President of the Ibero-American Road Institute (IVIA). We took advantage of his presence in Lisbon to ask him a few questions about his new responsibilities:

The forthcoming Tier 4 emissions legislation represents a great leap forward in technology, Mike Woof reports A high-profile focus on sustainability and reduced environmental impact is sweeping the construction sector in the European Union (EU) and the US. The EU and the US will implement regulations for the lowest emission off-road machines in history, with Canada and Japan expected to release similar regulatory programmes this year. The legislation being introduced will transform the construction indu

Aximum is a comparatively new organisation, but it incorporates many old-established companies in the route safety business. As Alan Peterson discovered, it is 'ready to pick up speed' A few weeks ago the French-based Aximum Group added a fourth international subsidiary to its portfolio of businesses at the end of what has been a busy period for the fledgling company. Al Habtoor Aximum is a joint venture with the leading contractor in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and with the backing of this highly rega

ECED's first Dealers' Conference in April during Intermat resulted in "a tremendous success and solid future outlook for the association" The president of the European Confederation of Equipment Distributors (ECED), Dr. José Gameiro, said the gravity of the current crisis is "the worst in the past 50 years, with a devastating effect on equipment distribution for public works and civil construction." Describing the foreseeable consequences for the equipment sector, he estimated that "up to 20-30% of Euro

Contractor FM Conway is working on a three year contract with Dover Harbour Board to reconstruct and resurface busy access routes and large vehicle parks within the port. One of the major factors for this contract being awarded was the company's strong green credentials. The contract is based around small and large individual paving projects within the Eastern Docks, which can range in time scales from three weeks to six months. The first phase of work, which started in early May, was to fully reconstruct