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Canadian contractor Stantec is to lead design work for a 16km upgrade and widening of State Road 91 in the US state of Florida. Work will turn the section of road through Lake County into price-managed lanes for improved travel reliability, according to the company which will be working for Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise, part of the Florida Department of Transportation. Turnpike Enterprise operates a 740km-system of limited access toll highways Stantec’s design for the project, with a construction cos

The soon-to-be mandatory speed limiters on vehicles in the European Union will make all safety other features more efficient, according the UK-based Transport Research Laboratory. In March the European Parliament passed a law that safety features such as intelligent speed assistance and advanced emergency-braking system must be installed in new vehicles from May 2022. They form part of the EU’s new suite of safety measures. TRL, which provided input for the European Commission regarding the formulatio

On the back of a record-breaking event in 2018 the organisers of the UK’s Hillhead Exhibition have extended the event once again for 2020. The 2018 event was supported by 546 exhibitors and attracted an independently audited attendance of nearly 20,000. With outdoor space on track to be sold out by late autumn, an additional 2,200m² of stand space has been created in the quarry floor by extending the showground into the quarry face demonstration area. Hillhead 2020 takes place from 23–25 June, 202

Bunting Magnetics celebrated 60 years in business by supplying a one of the largest quarries in the US state of Georgia with a Bunting PCB1206-EL Permanent Crossbelt Separator.

Charity organisation iRap (International Road Assessment Programme) is celebrating reaching 100 countries including Brazil, Iceland and China. The charity works with its partners to save lives and prevent serious injuries on the world’s roads.

The Albanian parliament has approved a public-private partnership (PPP) deal worth nearly €214 million for a 17km section of motorway between Milot and Balldre.

Slovakia is to invest around €2.9 billion to improve roads in the economically depressed coal-mining region Upper Nitra. Work will include upgrades and repairs to 150km of dual carriageways and motorways in order to attract businesses other than those associated with mining which is being gradually closed. The improved road infrastructure will connect existing and planned business and commercial parks and zones, according to local media. Towns near the R2 dual carriageway, including Handlova, Novaky a

Completion of Prague’s outer ring-road connecting the D1 motorway with Běchovice town to the north should be in 2024, a year earlier than planned. Czech prime minister Andrej Babiš made the announcement, saying the 2025 date set by the Czech Highway Authority was too far off, according to local media. The national Czech News Agency reported that the 12.5km section will cost around €365 million. Transport minister Vladimíra Kremlík said that the state will have to acquire land from up to 500 land ow

Brazil has set out plans for a massive programme of transport infrastructure development. This will see extensive works being handled until 2022. In all 16,000km of road works will be carried out, as well as a number of rail improvements and upgrades. External investment is being sought for many of the major projects.

The first so-called Texas U-Turn in the US state of California has opened as part of the Gerald Desmond Bridge Replacement project at Long Beach. The design enables trucks and other vehicles to make a safe and free-flowing U-turn at the west end of the project at the port access undercrossing, a second tunnel near the intersection of Ocean Boulevard and State Route 47 (SR-47) on Terminal Island. The Texas U-turn - named because it is a common feature at intersections in the state of Texas - enables ve

A new sea crossing is planned for Saudi Arabia. The 3.3km link will connect with a new commercial and residential development project located at Shurayrah.. The crossing will feature two causeways connected by a section of bridge and will connect with a hub island featuring new properties. The designers say that the sea crossing is being so as not to impede water flow and also so as to minimise impact to sea live in the area.

New loans will help pay for road building in India’s Kerala State. The World Bank is providing a package of loans worth US$216 million. This will be used to upgrade and widen 363km of roads in Kerala State. The work forms part of the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP), specifically for the second phase of the State Highway corridor programme.

Indonesia is planning to construct more tolled highways as well as bridges. One novel proposal is for a new tolled road that will run along the sea dike protecting the Jakarta Coast. This new road is intended to lower congestion levels in North Jakarta by providing an alternative route to existing links. Indonesia’s Transport Ministry is working with the Korea International Partnership Agency and the Dutch Water and Infrastructure Management Agency on the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NC

A major long term financing package has been secured for highway projects in India. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will benefit from a credit package worth nearly US$ 3.4 billion. This is being provided by the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). The deal involves bonds issued for a 30-year period. India has also announced plans to continue with its massive road development programme. By 2024/25, the $10.8 billion road development programme will have extended the country’s network b

The UK’s driving test has been made far tougher in recent times, in a bid to boost safety. Some people take up to 21 attempts to pass their practical test, according to data from the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). The information covers every year between 2009 and 2018. In 2016, one driver passed at the 21st attempt in one year. Another driver took 19 attempts to pass in 2018. Meanwhile one learner failed 19 tests in 2009, 2015 and 2017. The car driving test pass rate was 45.8% for the 2018/

Construction work on the upgrade of the road connecting Calabar with Itu and Ikot Ekpene in South East Nigeria has once again ground to a halt. The contractor carrying out the work, Julius Berger, has transferred personnel and equipment to other projects. This action has been taken due to a delay in payments for the work to the contractor. The road is now in extremely poor condition, which is a key problem for transport between Cross River State and Akwa Ibom State. Much of the road is now said to be virt

The contract for Paraguay’s US$130 million Costanera Sur avenue project has now been awarded. Located in Asuncion, the road project will be handled by a consortium headed by the Spanish contractor Eurofinsa, and also including the Paraguayan firm Ingenieria de Topografia y Caminos. The 8.3km road link will features two lanes in either direction and will run alongside the Paraguay River. Included in the project will be the construction of three bridges.

A new tolled bridge link is planned for Indonesia’s East Kalimantan. The tender process is opening for the North Penajam Paser-Balikpapan toll bridge project. Building the bridge is expected to cost in the order of US$1.02 billion. The structure and the road connections needed will be around 7.35km long. Building the bridge will cut journey times between Balikpapan and North Panajam from as much as 120 minutes at present to just 10 minutes when the structure is complete.

A Canadian firm is taking over three highways in India from Essel Highways. The US$472.8 million deal is for the the Essel Devanahalli Tollway in Karnataka state, the Lebad-Jaora highway in Madhya Pradesh and Essel Dichpally Tollway in Telangana. The Canadian company is Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ)

A new bridge project costing nearly US$756 million has been proposed for Brazil.