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Financial issues are now impacting heavily on Spain's Radial 4 (R-4) highway. The companies involved, Autopista Madrid Sur Concesionaria Espanola and Inversiones de Autopistas del Sur, are facing high levels of corporate debt. However traffic volumes have been lower than expected, while the cost of the project has been high.

To generate savings on motorways Transport Minister, Frédéric Cuvillier, may ask the three largest operators (Vinci Autoroutes, APRR, Sanef-SAPN) to take on maintenance and renovation spending on certain sections in exchange for concession extensions. Motorways in Ile-de-France and stretches of motorways around Paris (A6, A10 and A13) could be among the first to be subject to the new maintenance and renovation arrangements. Negotiations will start with ASFA (Association des Société Françaises d'Autoroutes).

According to the American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), changes in the way the US Government reviews bridge projects could speed repairs. ARTBA has long-advocated this change, which could save US taxpayers an estimated US$78 million and reduce wait times for repair projects on more than 196,000 bridges in the country. The decision by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) will allow the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to streamline the historic preservation proces

According to the American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), changes in the way the US Government reviews bridge projects could speed repairs. ARTBA has long-advocated this change, which could save US taxpayers an estimated US$78 million and reduce wait times for repair projects on more than 196,000 bridges in the country. The decision by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) will allow the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to streamline the historic preservation proces

South Korea suffers from an appalling rate of road crashes, acccording to a new report published by the Korea Transport Institute. The report investigated crash data from the 29 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. This revealed that South Korea has the highest road fatality rate of those 29 nations. In 2010, South Korea saw an average number of road deaths hit 11.3/100,000 individuals. Drilling down further into the data revealed that in 2011, pedestrians in North

Spending on road maintenance differs greatly between Swedish municipalities, a report by Svevia has shown. Malmö municipality was the highest spender in Sweden with €295.53 spent per resident, which compared with the country's lowest spending municipality Berg, where €14.27 per resident was invested in road maintenance.

A lack of sufficient road maintenance poses future problems for Belgium’s road network, according to the country’s planning office. Unless investment is made, the Belgium Planning Office (BPO) believes the nation’s road network will become overcrowded and dilapidated by 2020. BPO says that this could result in travel speeds falling 29% from 2008 to 2030 due to congestion and with a corresponding rise in journey times. Belgium's roads are amongst those with the heaviest traffic volumes in Europe. The BPO bel

China Construction Machinery Association (CCMA) secretary general Su Zimeng presented the organisation’s industry status and forecast at Bauma China today. Mr Su reported that the Chinese domestic construction machinery market has declined substantially, and is still declining: The slide in domestic demand has been continuous, and inventory is still high, although lower than it has been. There are signs of stabilisation, and there are still challenges ahead, but CCMA believes the situation also presents opp

Talks between the Chinese Development Bank and the Serbian Government could result in €400-€450 million of Chinese funding for Serbian highway projects. The Danube coast and the Corridor 11 projects are among those earmarked for a potential cash boost. Serbia’s Ministry for Transport (MOT) is also in talks with Chinese partners about other highway builds including100km of the Belgrade-Cacak, Belgrade-Obrenovac, Preljina-Ljig and Lajkovac-Ljig routes, as well as the 100km Pojate-Preljina project. China Road

Bosnian motorways company Autoputevi RS claims that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has expressed readiness to approve a €350 million loan for the construction of the 46.6km long part of the Corridor Vc motorway, from Doboj to Vukosavlje. The project is set to be carried out through what has been described as a public and private partnership model.

After many delays work is now progressing on the expansion of Bulgaria’s highway network. The authorities in Sofia plan to commence construction of the 33km Vratsa-Botevgrad link in the west of the country and the project is expected to cost in the region of €188 million. Meanwhile Turkish input is to be withdrawn from the Ruse-Svilengrad highway project. However, Qatar and Bulgaria remain committed to the project, which will eventually provide a link between Romania and Greece. Running through Bulgaria, th

Authorities in the Czech capital Prague are looking at options to speed the completion of a new ring road. Constructing the internal ring road on a fast-track basis could cost in the order of €81.5 million (CZK2 billion). Should this move be made the route could be ready to carry traffic by 2015. Prague suffers heavy congestion at peak periods, particularly in the historic city centre. The new road would help reduce the need for drivers travelling through the congested centre and help cut journey times over

The European Commission (EC) has launched a new award that encourages the adoption of Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs) by local and regional authorities. Under the inaugural theme 'stakeholder and citizen participation', local and regional authorities can submit their SUMPs for award consideration at www.dotherightmix.eu EC vice-president Siim Kallas, responsible for transport, said: “'Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans can help cities and towns offer their citizens integrated mobility options that ar

Road deaths in France were down 7.6% in August 2012 compared to the same month in 2011. In total, 342 people were killed in road accidents. During the first eight months of 2012, road deaths were down 8.9% compared to the same period of 2011, despite a 3.6% increase during the month of July. Between September 2011 and August 2012, the number of deaths was 3,728. As of 1 November, 2012, it will be compulsory to have a breathalyser in every vehicle. This move comes in addition to the 3,900 speed cameras which