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Researchers in Australia are develop a roadside test that can determine whether drivers are too drowsy to be behind the wheel. The system uses special glasses that track eye movements and measure the length of blinks, which are factors thought to identify whether a person is fatigued. The system is being developed as research suggests up to 20% of Australians have fallen asleep while at the wheel and 33% drive while tired once a month or more. Driving while tired is thought to be as much a risk as being

Construction of the Kinmen Bridge in Taiwan has now been resumed, with work having restarted on the project in late 2016. The bridge will be 5.4km long in all and will have a 1.05km long main section, connecting the islands of Greater Kinmen and Little Kinmen (also known as Lieyu). The project includes building approach roads for the bridge as well as cuttings and connecting ramps. Costing US$292 million and with funding being provided jointly by Taiwan’s Government and the local authorities, the bridge is

The Florida Department of Transportation has awarded Parsons a contract to carry out an analysis of the I-95 Interchange with LPGA Boulevard in Volusia County. The contract involves analysing the conceptual layout and ultimate reconfiguration of the interchange, followed by providing final design services once the best solution has been selected. The work is needed as traffic and congestion are expected to increase due to the rise in residential and commercial development in the Daytona Beach area. The I-9

The American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) is calling for changes by which the federal Clean Air Act (CAA) sets National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The CAA was last amended in 1990 but ARTBA says that official data shows that there has been an increase in distances driven as well as a significant reduction in air pollutants since that time. In a statement submitted for a House Energy & Commerce Committee hearing on modernising environmental laws, ARTBA said: “Overall, th

Management responsibility for several key highway stretches in France will be transferred. The three new urban highways are currently state-run but the concessions for these routes will be transferred to private firms. Vinci subsidiary Escota is to operate a highway stretch in the east of Toulon that includes a section of tunnel, with the deal also including upgrading of the route to boost capacity. Meanwhile Area will run a section of highway in Grenoble while APRR will operate a stretch of highway to the

As the 7th-ranked world power, South East Asia is one of the world’s most dynamic and high-growth zones. More than US$60 billion of investment in infrastructure projects is planned per year between now and 2022. The region’s importance to the global construction equipment sector can’t be overestimated.

Work on the Al Mafraq-Al Ghweifat highway project in the UAE is now well underway. This US$5.3 billion project is due for completion in first half of 2017. The Al Mafraq-Al Ghweifat highway is being built in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi. Work on the first phase of the project was completed in 2016. This is a substantial project that includes the construction of 16 new interchanges and upgrades to 246km of roads. The project also includes building new lanes on the Mafraq-Baynounah and Baraka-Ghuwaifat rou

In Paraguay the government is setting up plans for rebuilding Ruta 9, the Transchaco road. Negotiations have been held with regard to funding with the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). A loan worth US$160 million from the IADB will help fund the work. Funding for the project will also be provided by the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF).

A recent decision by the US Army Corps of Engineers could help speed the delivery of transportation projects. The decision was to exempt the Nationwide Permit (NWP) programme from an Executive Order freezing regulatory activity by federal agencies. And the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) believes that this will clear a path for the development of transportation projects, helping to boost the construction sector as a result. The NWP program, which was reauthorised by the Obama