News

Another stage has been reached in the informal negotiations between the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council to revise the Eurovignette Directive. The Directive involves charging heavy goods vehicles for the use of certain infrastructures, and an informal compromise has to be endorsed by the European Parliament and Council.

New Holland Construction has donated a LS180 skid steer loader to the Italian Red Cross at a ceremony at its headquarters in Legnano, Lombardy. Giampiero Biglia, Italy’s business director for New Holland Construction officially presented the machine, which will become part of the Italian Red Cross earth working fleet used in missions in Italy and elsewhere. He said: “New Holland Construction has always supported public organisations that are committed to civil protection, the protection of our territory a

Arriva Denmark, part of the Arriva Group owned by Deutsche Bahn, has been awarded the 2011 Transport Achievement Award for its Better Bus Ride project. Special mentions were made for Istanbul Rapid Bus Transit, Turkey, and DHL Global Forwarding, Germany, at the International Transport Forum at the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development), an inter-governmental organisation for the transport sector with 52 member countries.

The contract for Italy’s new Pedemontana Lombarda highway is likely to be handled by a consortium headed by Austrian contractor Strabag. The agreement will be finalised in September 2011. The consortium has a provisional deal for design and construction of the €2.3 billion 75km highway, which will connect Bergamo to Milan Malpensa airport, bypassing Milan. The consortium also includes Adanti, Grandi Lavori and Impresa Costruzioni Giuseppe Maltauro. The Pedemontana Lombarda highway project features a 65km st

A landmark has been reached for the production of mini excavators in Japan, as Hitachi Construction Machinery Tierra (HCM Tierra) celebrates machine number 150,001 to roll off the production line. The delivery of the ZX52U-3 to Hitachi Construction Machinery (Europe)/HCME was marked with a ceremony at the Oosterhout mini excavator factory in the south of The Netherlands. The handover celebration was attended by Masamichi Itou, divisional general manager Oosterhout factories;

The cost of the Strait of Messina bridge looks set to climb from original estimates.

After a solid first quarter 2011, Strabag, Central and Eastern Europe’s largest construction company, has raised its outlook for the financial years 2011 and 2012. According to the new forecast, Strabag expects an output volume of €14 billion in 2011 (previous target €13.5 billion), with earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) forecast to increase to €320 million, after €295 million had been predicted. For 2012, the company had expected an output volume of €13.7 billion and an EBIT of €300 million, whi

The European Quality Association (EQAR) held a congress on Recycling of Building Materials in Europe and concluded there is a need for action. Manfred Wierichs, president of EQAR, demanded intensified efforts for reaching more efficiency of resources in the field of mineral building materials. Jo Leinen, chairman of the Environment Committee of the European Parliament, speaking at the meeting in Brussels, Belgium,

In a pilot study being carried out by the Department of Applied Environmental Science (ITM) at Stockholm University, four taxis have been equipped to measure pollution and particulate matter. Instruments fitted to the roof of the taxis undertakes measurements which are then cross referenced with the cars' GPS as they travel around Sweden's capital.

The Illinois Tollway is seeking firms to provide design, management and other technical services for 22 new contracts associated with the 15-year, US$12 billion capital programme Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future.The contracts will provide for more than $200 million in services over the next five years for new projects including the Elgin O'Hare West Bypass, the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) rebuild and widening and the Tri-State Tollway (I-294)/I-57 Interchange."In August, the Il

Car2go, a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler North America Corporation, and the city of San Diego have officially launched North America's first all-electric car sharing network. Car2go began deploying 300 Smart fortwo electric drive vehicles Friday in San Diego, which are now in service and available for use.Unlike traditional car sharing schemes, Car2go says it meets the daily needs of members by providing a free-floating network of vehicles that is truly available on-demand for point-to-point trips.