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A major highway connection project located in Tampa, Florida has won a 2014 Outstanding Project Award from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and the Florida Institute of Consulting Engineers (FICE). The link was opened in January 2014 and was engineered by designer Atkins. The 1.6km-long I-4/Selmon Connector links I-4 with the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway. The US$425 million Connector now carries over 24,000 vehicles/day, which includes some 2,000 heavy vehicles/day. With the construction of the

LiuGong Europe now has a new website platform that is said to be more convenient easier to use. The new site allows is said to offer increased usability, allowing users to easily navigate through LiuGong’s European product line while offering in-depth machine details. Each product category – including by group, range, operating weight, emissions, net power and more – helps users locate and learn about specific machines. A news section has been added to the platform to allow a greater insight into the lates

Chinese Construction Company (CCCC) has won contracts to build roads, a bridge and an interchange in Ethiopia. In all the deal is worth some US$132.5 million. The contract was awarded to CCCC by the Ethiopian Roads Authority (ERA). A key portion of the contract is for the construction of a new bridge spanning the Omo River. The deal also includes designing the Omo Kuraz sugar factory, as well as building a new interchange that will link the plant to the road network.

A series of new road and bridge projects worth some US$186 million will help connectivity in New Zealand. The plans include studies for three projects in Bays of Plenty, Hawkes Bany and Nelson. Other planned projects include the Nelson southern link, Rotorua eastern arterial and a Port of Napier access package. The programme includes work on the construction of five road projects as well as building a number of bridges. This programme of works is in addition to plans for work on regional roads.

The Spanish construction firm Ferrovial is to handle a US$655 million contract in North Carolina. The 50 year concession package is for the I-77 highway. Under the terms of the package, Ferrovial’s subsidiary Cintra will improve and upgrade the I-77 highway in Charlotte.

What a mother should tell you - image courtesy of World Highways reader Bogdan Schiteanu

A new agreement between Finnish firm Neste Oil and RAE from the US is paving the way for the development of sustainable fuel. The two companies have agreed on an algae biomass solution for renewable diesel fuels. This would offer a strong potential as a fuel source as the algae can be produced easily and at comparatively low cost. This second generation biofuel source offers numerous benefits over earlier generation biofuels, which have been sourced from food crops and also linked to riding food prices as w

Data from the ACI-ITAT body in Italy reveals an improvement in the country’s road safety in 2013. The statistics show a 2.2% drop in vehicle crashes for 2013 compared with 2012. The data shows that there has been a 6.9% drop in fatalities and a 2% drop in injuries on Italian roads during 2013 compared with 2012. However ACI-ITAT warns that there is no room for complacency as there are still around 500 crashes/day in Italy.

Demolition of the Bay Bridge in California is underway at present. A new cable stayed structure now carries traffic and the old steel cantilever bridge is being dismantled piece by piece. The work is being carried out in stages so as to maximise safety and also to meet the tough environmental legislation that forbids any waste material accidentally falling into the waterway. The dismantling process is taking three years in all to complete.

So far 18 companies have been registered as eligible for tenders in the Agua Negra Tunnel project, which will link Argentina with Chile. The tender process is commencing for the project in the second half of 2014. The new tunnel will provide a better alternative to existing routes connecting the two countries through the Andes Mountain range at present. One of the existing routes is through a high mountain pass, which is frequently blocked due to poor weather while being unsuitable for heavy vehicles. The o