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The Australian state of Victoria will benefit from US$2.26 billion (A$3 billion) in funding for planned road projects. This financing will be split equally by the Federal Government and the Victoria State Government. Some $520 million (A$690 million) will be spent on regional and rural road projects while $753.3 million (A$1 billion) will be used to upgrade the Monash Freeway as well as for other works including improving the M80 Ring Road.

President of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, announced that the national government will implement the Strategic Mobility Plan until 2030, which will require public and private investments of USD 38bn (EUR 33.83bn). The Minister of Transport and Public Works, Boris Cordova, further added that the primary objective of the initiative will be to expand some of the national routes and to convert them into motorways, in order to accommodate the mounting logistical needs of the growing national economy. With the projects

Turkish highway authorities will tender construction of the remaining part the Izmir-Menemen-Aliaga-Candarli motorway on 15 February. The contract will be build-operate-transfer for the 76km section between the towns of Aliaga and Candarli. Constructions is expected to take three years. The 16km section between Izmir and Menemen is already finished, according to Turkish media. Up to 60,000 vehicles a day are projected to use the highway from Izmir to Candarli. It is officially called the Otoyol 30

The cost for completing the three toll road sections of the Trans-Sumatra project will be almost US$1.7 billion, according to a major Indonesian construction firm. Hutama Karya is working on the 140km stretch from Bakauheni-Terbangi Besar, the 28km Palembang-Simpang Indralya section and the 18km Medan-Binjai stretch, said the company’s managing director, Gusti Ngurah Putera The Trans-Sumatran Highway is the primary north-south road, running around 2,500km on the island of Sumatra. It connect the north

Wide clearance is required for some vehicles - image courtesy of Petra Schwimmbeck

Organisers of bauma Conexpo India are bullish about the success of the upcoming December event with many visitors registering on-line now. Exhibitors, too, have been lining up for bauma Conexpo India to be held December 12-15, 2016, at the HUDA grounds in Gurgaon/Delhi. The fourth International Trade Fair for Construction Machinery, Building Material Machines, Mining Machines and Construction Vehicles is being held for the fourth time after solid support from big-name exhibitors in the past. And they

Sydney’s proposed WestConnex motorway will be wider than planned to accommodate four instead of three lanes in each direction, according to media reports. The changes are part of a revamp of the third and final stage of the ambitious project in the capital city of Australia’s eastern New South Wales state. Some exit and entry ramps will also be scrapped but the overall cost of just under US$5.3 billion for the third stage remains unchanged, reported the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper. The projects

The Australian city of Melbourne has laid out plans for a US$1.4 billion public-private partnership to revamp major city streets. Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and, with around 4.6 million people, the second most populous city in Australia. Some areas of Melbourne are growing by up to 6% a year. More than 700km of suburban roads will be upgraded by 2022 as part of the 20-year construction and maintenance package, said state premier Daniel Andrews. Eight h

The mayor of the Colombian capital Bogota, Enrique Penalosa, said he is confident of securing nearly US$4 billion for eight infrastructure projects, including roads. Money will come from selling a 20% stake in the energy firm Empresa de Energia de Bogota and privatisation of the local communications firm Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Bogota. Major infrastructure projects include construction of an underground metro system, several feeder roads, the new Carrera 7 route for the Transmilenio bus rapid

German engine manufacturer DEUTZ said it had a “very encouraging increase” in operating profit for the first three quarters of 2016. EBIT – earnings before interest and tax – stood at €19.7 million, significantly higher than the figure for the prior-year period of €10.6 million. DEUTZ said that this was due, in particular, to a decrease in depreciation and amortisation. Consequently, the EBIT margin almost doubled to reach 2.1%. Net income for the first nine months of 2016 was €18.8 million, compa

German discount supermarket chain Lidl is to sponsor 3,500 new rental bicycles in Berlin. The bicycle system Lidl Bikes will be operated by DB Rent, a subsidiary of German railway provider Deutsche Bahn (DB), and be available from spring next year. DB Rent, which has been running rental bicycles for nearly 15 years, is operating around 10,000 bicycles in 50 German cities. The system of flexible borrowing will cover Berlin's S-Bahn commuter train region. But from the end of 2017 Lidl Bikes will face

German discount supermarket chain Lidl is to sponsor 3,500 new rental bicycles in Berlin. The bicycle system Lidl Bikes will be operated by DB Rent, a subsidiary of German railway provider Deutsche Bahn (DB), and be available from spring next year. DB Rent, which has been running rental bicycles for nearly 15 years, is operating around 10,000 bicycles in 50 German cities. The system of flexible borrowing will cover Berlin's S-Bahn commuter train region. But from the end of 2017 Lidl Bikes will face