News

Bolivian president Evo Morales has decided to put his plans to build a new highway through the Amazon jungle to the vote. Morales is going to ask the affected communities directly if they want the new road or not, after a noisy protest campaign against the plan caused him to think more deeply.

Clean diesel engines will continue to be the dominant power source for heavy-duty vehicles in the United States for "decades to come because of their power and efficiency," according to a newly released study prepared for the US Department of Energy.

A new report from a Washington, DC, energy policy group urges the federal government to begin allocating its US$150 billion budget for transport services to carriers that fuel their fleets on domestically produced natural gas, electricity, biofuels and other alternatives to diesel and gasoline.

An inspection carried out by German specialists has highlighted technical issues with five bridges in the Czech city of Ostrava. The Czech Road and Motorway Headquarters (RSD) has said that a more comprehensive study will be required before the type of repairs needed can be identified and a programme of works established. There have been questions over the scope and accuracy of the one day inspection however.

Equipment auction specialist Ritchie Bros is planning a huge sale of used equipment in the US state of North Carolina in September 2012. This unreserved sale of equipment includes no less than 60 Caterpillar D11 bulldozers as well as 20 other bulldozers. Also up for auction are over 30 large wheeled loaders and over 35 Caterpillar 777 trucks, as well as graders and other items of machinery. This particular sale is of note as the 60 D11 bulldozers are more than the firm has sold of this model over the last f

A survey carried out by the UK’s Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) points to tougher sentencing for driving offenders. According to the survey, 80% of respondents said that repeat drink drive offenders should have their vehicles seized and sold or scrapped. The poll also said that 50% of respondents think that this should also happen to drivers caught several times over the limit. The respondents were also behind reducing the drink-drive limit, with 66% wanting to see the limit reduced. Most said it sho

A new CAD $100 million ‘super road’ is earmarked for False Creek, an inlet in Vancouver, Canada. City transportation planners said the project could follow the imminent removal of the Dunsmuir and Georgia viaducts. This would allow city authorities to reclaim two blocks in the middle of Gore and Quebec streets, leading to the construction of retail housing space measuring 850,000sqft and a new super road from Pacific Boulevard.

The Rhône-Alpes region of France along with seven Swiss cantons, Tyrol in Austria and five Italian regions are joining forces in a bid to limit road traffic in the Alps. The partners have developed a shared geographic information system and a good practices guide. Aimed at teaching users, the guide promotes an eco-mobility campaign with Tyrol and a hotline with information on means of non-polluting transport in Chambéry. It also underlines that trucks cannot circulate at night and on Sundays in Switzerland,

A construction industry task force is being assembled by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA). This group includes key industry leaders who will chair the ARTBA MAP-21 funding/implementation task force. Top executives from the Kiewit Corporation and Lane Construction will join a former executive director of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in leading ARTBA’s transportation panel. The group will spearhead the association’s efforts to secure additional federal investment fo

A report by US-based research specialist the Freedonia Group highlights the continuing strong growth in the Chinese construction market. According to Freedonia’s report, construction expenditure in China will increase 8.8%/year in real terms throughout 2016. Although this growth will slow slightly from the rapid pace seen during 2006-2011, the country will continue to outperform other major national construction markets. This will be driven by urbanisation and industrialisation, rebounding foreign investmen

Major road projects in Kenya are to benefit from a loan agreement with China. Two roads receiving funds are located in Kenya’s Migori and Home Bay counties. One of the roads links Sori and Sindo and runs through Nyandiwa, while the other connects Masara and Mbita via Karungu, Sindo and Magunga. Another loan is being offered to build the Narok-Masai Mara (C12) road, which will link with the Narok-Mau-Narok (C57) road. The deal involves Chinese firm Zhongmei Engineering Group and the Kenyan Government.

Volvo CE said strong sales, particularly in North America, helped the company record a 15% rise in equipment sales in Q2 of 2012 – bucking a worldwide reduction in the size of the global equipment sales market. The company’s operating income also rose in Q2 2012 to 35%, with operating margin up 13.3% on the same period of 2011. Volvo CE strengthened its market position in wheeled loader and excavator sales in China, taking a 14.7% share of the vital market.

US civil engineering company Shimmick Construction, Italian peer Impregilo and a Spanish firm have been officially awarded the US$ 650 million contract for the Gerald Desmond Bridge in Long Beach, California. The groups were judged to have submitted the best technical and economic proposals for the bridge, which will measure approximately 610 metres in length and have around two kilometres of access ramps.