News

Funding has been secured to help pay for road rebuilding work in Puerto Rico. The US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is providing US$110 million to Puerto Rico’s highway and transportation agency, Autoridad de Carreteras y Transportacion (ACT). This funding will be used for Puerto Rico’s Road Construction and Reconstruction Accelerated Programme.

US roads have been slightly safer in 2018, according to new data from the National Safety Council (NSC). The research shows that motor-vehicle deaths have decreased in the first five months of 2018.There were 15,280 deaths in motor vehicle related incidents through January and May 2018. This represents a drop of 0.5% from the 15,330 deaths recorded through January and May 2017. However for the period through January and May 2016, the data shows that the rate of motor vehicle related deaths was 9% higher, h

Work is starting on the first phase of a new road project in the UAE. This will see new interchanges being built for International City, Dragon City and Warsan Village as well as the surrounding area. The work will also include widening some existing roads and adding new road signalling technology. The road improvement work is worth nearly US$109 million.

A series of road upgrades and safety improvements will be introduced across the network in Ghana. In all US$154 million will be provided in a loan from the World Bank Group's International Development Association (IDA) for a series of road projects. The IDA loan has a 20-year repayment period. The improvement programme calls for improvements and upgrades to 370km of roads in the north of Ghana. Meanwhile new management practices will also be introduced to Ghana’s transport sector in a bid to boost its effic

Progress is being seen in China with the development of the country’s first undersea tunnel. The new tunnel will be located in Shenzhen and is expected to take three years to construct, once work commences at the end of 2018. The 8.05km connection will run between the Dachan Bay toll Gate on the Shenzhen-Guangzhou Riverside Expressway and Yueliangwan Boulevard in Qianhai. The tunnel stretch will be 1.1km long, with a 4.45km road connection at the Dachan Bay end and a 2.5km road link located in Qianhai.

A new bridge project is expected to boost transport in and out of a key port in Vietnam. Approval is being sought to go ahead with the bridge for the port of Haiphong, which lies on the coast close to the city of Hanoi. The project is expected to cost nearly US$304 million.

A new bridge project is being planned for the German city of Bonn. The city has three bridges crossing the Rhein River, the North, South and Kennedy Bridges. The North Bridge is in need of replacement as it is no longer able to meet the city’s traffic needs. The existing structure will be demolished and replaced with a new bridge in a project worth €205 million. Plans should be ready for the new link in 2020, with construction expected to commence in 2028.

A new highway section is now open to traffic in the UAE. This highway is designed to connect the north and south of Ras Al Khaimah emirate, extending from the Emirates Road. The new highway features three lanes in either direction, with a maximum speed limit of 140km/h and is designed to carry up to 60,000 vehicles/day. Featuring 10 intersections the Ras Al Khaimah Ring Road will measure 30km-long when complete. Work is being carried out on a number of bridges along the route with the rest of the highway li

Work is starting shortly on rebuilding a stretch of Toronto’s FG Gardiner Expressway. The US$248 million project to upgrade section 1 of the route will be handled by the Aecon Group. Work will start in the third quarter of 2018 and should be finished by the end of 2020. Aecon Group’s contract calls for rebuilding work to three ramps plus a complete replacement of the FG Gardiner Expressway between Jarvis Street and Cherry Street. Other features of the work will include new street lighting systems being inst

A new highway project is planned for Cambodia that will improve transport connections to and from its capital, Phnom Penh and the coastal area, Preah Sihanouk. Construction is scheduled to commence in November 2018, with the 190km route expected to cost in the order of US$1.8 billion. The Cambodian Government is managing the project itself, through the Ministry of Public Works. Once the highway is complete it will provide an improved transport link between Phnom Penh and the port of Sihanoukville.

French construction machine manufacturer Mecalac is expanding its operations with a key acquisition. The Mecalac Group is adding to its range of products by taking over production of a range of compact wheeled loaders, currently being manufactured by the French company Pichon. The deal will be finalised on January 1st, 2019. The Pichon firm specialises in the design and manufacture of agricultural equipment and is based at Landivisiau in Brittany (France). Following the deal, Pichon will cease production of