News

Internationally renowned academic José Viegas of Portugal has begun work as the new chief executive of International Transport Forum (ITF), the global transport policy body. The ITF is an intergovernmental organisation with 54 member countries that acts as a strategic think tank for global transport policy and organises an annual summit of transport ministers.

A leading global construction and mining machine industry showcase event being held in 2013 has nearly booked out its exhibition space – despite a 50% extension. Organisers of the Bauma CONEXPO show bC India 2013, which will cover 150,000m2 of exhibition space compared to 88,000m2 in 2011, say they have drawn up a waiting list for some sections of the event being held from February 5 to 8, 2013, at the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai.

The most expensive highway ever built in Nevada will open before the end of August to a storm of protest. The new 13.7km Interstate 580 three-lane motorway, which is reported to have cost more than US $0.5 billion to construct, has been dubbed a vanity project by local politicians.

The number of Heavy Goods Vehicles travelling through Carlisle’s city centre is estimated to have been reduced by more than a third since the new multi-million euro Carlisle Northern Development Route opened in February 2012.

Organisers of the 12th Beijing International Construction Machinery Exhibition and Seminar (BICES 2013) say they expect to attract over 1,500 exhibitors to the event. Being held at Beijing Jiuhua International Exhibition Centre from 15th to 18th October, 2013, and themed ‘Pre-emptive Opportunity, Value of Innovation, Sustain Future Growth’, BICES 2013 is earmarked to cover 230,000㎡ of floor space.

Topcon has restructured its GNSS network business and global GNSS services, offering new and informative web resources for users. TopNET is said to offer subscription based, real-time GNSS network RTK and DGNSS subscriptions, with high quality GPS and GLONASS correction data, as well as all future GNSS signals, for many different applications; including surveying, construction, GIS mapping, machine control, and precision agriculture.

As heavy rain storms continue to batter the Chinese capital, Beijing, the number of collapsed road pavements has soared to record levels, according to the city's road and bridge maintenance authority. Since the start of the flooding on July 21 until mid-August, Beijing Municipal Bridge Maintenance Management Group, a State-owned business set up to repair the city’s bridges and roads, received nearly 300 emergency calls regarding collapsed road surfaces.

The Federal Government of Nigeria gave the go-ahead for work to start on the planning and design of a new Niger bridge. The country’s leaders have approved a US$2 million (Nigerian Naira N325 million) “transactional advisory services” contract to assess how to design and build, finance and operate a “Second Niger Bridge.” Contractor Roughton International Limited has been given 16 months to come back with a detailed schedule of how to progress.

UK-based Milton Keynes Council is to borrow €64 million (£50 million) for a new road repair programme to tackle the city’s “decaying" roads and pavements. The 1960’s new town, which is located about an hour’s drive north of London, has approved a plan which includes more than €27 million (£21 million) for vital road repair work, €18 million (£14 million) to tackle its ageing bridges and more than €9 million (£7 million) to restore the council’s pavement and footpath network.

Bids are now being offered for a major highway project in Bonsia. This follows the opening of the tender process for the project by Bosnian highway company Autoputevi Republike Srpske (ARS). The project is located in the autonomous entity Republika Srpska and is for construction of the Doboj-Vukosavlje highway. The project will be carried out under the public and private partnership model and will form part of the European Corridor Vc. The package includes financing, construction, management and maintenance

A new stretch of highway is now open to traffic in Nepal. The Nepalthok-Khurkot Road recently had its official opening. Some US$46.2 million was spent on the section of highway, with much of the funding being provided by the Japanese Government. The Nepalthok-Khurkot section of road forms part of a larger project and is Phase 3, Part-I of the Banepa-Sindhuli-Bardibas BP highway.

AVERY Weigh-Tronix, one of the world’s biggest suppliers of weighing equipment and solutions, has completed the takeover of UK-based weighing specialists Central Weighing. Peggi Trimble, general manager, industrial division for Avery-Weigh-Tronix (AWT), said the acquisition would give AWT the opportunity to expand its “global reach” and “bring added-value, innovative products to the market by leveraging existing distribution networks”.

There is caution but no catastrophe in the European construction equipment sales market, according to Volvo Construction Equipment (CE) EMEA sales president Tomas Kuta. Speaking at a press conference to launch Volvo CE’s PL3005D pipelayer, and ahead of the in-port race of the Volvo Ocean Race in Lorient, France, Kuta said: “Europe is not a catastrophe. Our Quarter 1 (2012) results were very much driven by Europe, but it’s the outlook that is so uncertain. “We (Volvo CE) have seen good development in the no

Up to US$536 million has been offered by the Canadian Government towards the $974 million construction of the Detroit River International Crossing Bridge. This will link Windsor, Ontario and the US city of Detroit. The construction of the bridge is due for completion by 2016.