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Five major highway maintenance contracts will be opened to tender in Mexico shortly. In all the contracts will cover 2,015km of roads while the work is expected to cost US$727 million in all. Key road links to be improved include the 300km Zacatecas-Norponiente road, the 430km road connecting Zacatecas with Sur, the 410km road from Jalisco to Centro and the 450km road concession between Jalisco and Oriente. The tender process is being handled by Mexico's Transport and Communications body, SCT.

Eurovia Infrastructure is the only contractor to secure a position on all three Lots of the US $ 144.02 million (£90mn) Hertfordshire Highways Structural Maintenance and Surface Treatments Framework contracts. The contracts began on 1 October 2012 and will run for four years. Lot 1 of the Hertfordshire County Council contract covers carriageway and footway surface treatments; Lot 2 covers carriageway resurfacing; and Lot 3 covers general civil engineering.

The Israeli firm Shikun & Binui Holdings (Shikun & Binui) is now moving ahead with its US$390 million road deal in Nigeria. Shikun & Binui's subsidiary, Solel Boneh International, was awarded a contract to widen and surface existing highway links in Sagamu-Benin region over a period of three years. Israeli firms have a long history of working in Nigeria on road projects and have developed construction techniques that suit the geological conditions and high rainfall experienced, as well as coping with the of

The Department of Transport in Rhode Island is about to set up a major noise reduction project on the area’s concrete road surfaces, many of which will be reformed overnight. Work begins now on I-195 in Providence and there will be overnight road closure for most of the Autumn. Nearly one year after the Rhode Island Department of Transportation opened the Iway's final ramp, the Rhode Island Department of Transport (RIDOT) has decided that it needs to reduce the high level of noise that the highway's concret

South Africa’s Department of Transport has set a budget of US$773 million to tackle road maintenance and also address a backlog of repairs on provincial roads. This budget is being spent in the 2011-2012 financial year. However increased spending is expected for the 2012-2013, with a budget of $1.17 billion having been set for provincial road maintenance. The work is seen as crucial as South Africa has a long backlog of road repair works that are required. Some 10,980km of the paved provincial road network

The tender process is getting underway for a series of highway contracts in Algeria. Several sections of the East-West Highway linking Arzew and Oran are being opened to bidding. These highway stretches run from; Canastel-Hai Belgaid, Belgaid-Kristel, Kristel-Cap Carbon, Cap Carbon-Arzew. Tenders are open for the Kristel-Arzew stretch and the bids will be examined from 22 October 2012. The scheduled opening date for this section of highway will be October 2014. A US$174 million contract for the Oran-Arzew s

Pedestrian crossings allow greater safety for vulnerable road users: image courtesy of World Highways reader Ewan Smith

The Highland Council in northern Scotland has appointed Capita Symonds to assist the Council’s Project Design Unit in providing detailed design civil engineering and supporting services for the new US $ 43.85 million (£27.2mn) Inverness West Link Road. The scheme will be completed in two phases – a year-long first phase which will involve developing a detailed design which will allow The Highland Council to subdivide the project into two construction stages, clearly define the layouts and footprints for the

The Vietnamese Government is seeking investors to support the construction of four 34.5km elevated highways valued at a combined US $ 2.68 billion in Ho Chi Minh City. Prime Minister and the Ministry of Transport are said to be tweaking the project, agreed by Government in 2007, in a bid to lure its first investors.

The World Bank is offering the Kenyan Government a loan worth nearly US$300 million to fund road projects. The lion’s share of the money will be used to construct a double decker road link in Kenyan capital Nairobi. The 30 year repayment loan will also feature a grace period of 10 years. The Kenyan Government will contribute a small sum to the project and will also be in charge of the tender process.

A novel safety programme is being implemented that will benefit Europe’s motorcyclists. The RIDERSCAN programme is the European motorcycle safety scanning tour. The project is being co-funded by the European Union, gathering existing data on motorcycle safety in order to identify missing knowledge and information and provide guidance to road authorities. It brings together all road safety stakeholders involved in motorcycle safety to create a knowledge network, enhancing communication and fostering better c

A leading industry body is calling for the UK’s motorway and main road links to be privatised and tolled. According to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), introducing a plan for tolled roads and privatised motorways will be the only way to ensure these major links can be adequately funded in the future. By privatising some 1,600km of motorways, the CBI believes that there should be sufficient revenue for necessary repair and maintenance works. At present the UK’s Highways Agency faces a funding sho