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India’s Institute of Road Traffic Education (IRTE) was among the international winners at the annual Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards in London. IRTE picked up the Premier Award for its road injury prevention programme and for being a key partner in the Safer Cars for India project established by Global NCAP, an independent certification body that evaluates the safety of vehicles. Part of IRTE’s strategy has been the setting up of what is believed to be Asia’s first Masters of Science i

A new proposal has been put forward in New Zealand to cut congestion on State Highway 1. At present the Basin Reserve Roundabout suffers heavy congestion, delaying journeys for drivers.

The completion date for Colombia’s massive Cambao-Manizales 4G road project has now been announced. The improved road link should now be read for traffic in mid-2022, according to Colombia's national infrastructure agency (ANI). The financing package for the Cambao-Manizales road project should be secured in the second half of 2019 and the construction work should commence in 2020. The project is expected to cost an initial US$363 million and the work is being carried out by Alternativas Viales, which won

Road Dryer, a US-based manufacturer of road drying equipment, has expanded its coverage into eastern Canada with the appointment of a dealer. Montreal Tractor (MTI) and its sister company Hot Mix & Aggregate (HMA), both based in Baie D'Urfé near Montreal in the province of Quebec, now exclusively represent Road Dryer’s pavement-drying units. They cover is Quebec as well as the provinces of Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland. Both dealerships offer new, used and reb

China is setting out its plans for increasing the use of EVs in the future. By 2030, the country’s Hainan Province will halt sales of new vehicles fuelled by either petrol or diesel. Hainan Province is also increasing the vehicle charging facilities so that by 2025, there will be one charging outlet for every two vehicles. All new government buses or passenger cars being bought for official use in Hainan Province will be clean energy vehicles from 2019. It has not been released however on the split between

Slovak contractors Vahostav-SK and TuCon will build the first stage of the 4.3km northern bypass in Presov on the R4 dual carriageway. The contract was awarded in an open tender by Slovakia’s motorway company NDS. The consortium offered the lowest price of just under €143 million against around €170 million as estimated by NDS which says work will start this summer. NDS also said that it had received five firm bids for the work which will likely take three years and nine months, for completion in 2

Slovakia’s motorway company NDS has selected a consortium led by Metrostav of the Czech Republic to build a 13.5km stretch of the R3 The cost of the R3 carriageway between Mytna and Tomasovce in the region of Lucenec will be just under €128 million. Other members of the consortium include Prague-based Hochtief CZ and Bratislava-based Hochtief SK and work should start this summer for completion in two years. NDS reported that it had received six bids for the project which went to tender in February 201

Serbia’s Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure has reported that in the past two year period, over 150km of motorways have been built. Ministry said that the new Corridor 10 has been opened, including the Zezeljev rail and road bridge in Novi Sad. The old bridge was built in 1961 and destroyed in 1999 during NATO bombing.

Traffic safety specialist SeñalConfor says its flexible reflectors have high-reflectance catadioptric plates sealed hermetically by injection into a flexible EVA - ethylene-vinyl acetate - body. This makes the rectangular flexible reflectors resistant to bends caused by wind or impacts and weather for many years, according to the company that was set up in Barcelona, Spain, in 2007. The units can be fixed onto a surface by plastic plugs or by mono-component adhesive recommended and tested by SeñalConfor.

The Quill Falcon Cyclone 60 Trailer water blasting system efficiently removes road markings and anti-skid coatings without scorching or scarring highway surfaces. According to the manufacturer, the portable Falcon Cyclone 60 is the most convenient of the Quill Falcon range because it comprises a Quill Falcon Cyclone 60 unit, a 115litre water tank and a 90cfm or 140cfm compressor. It provides everything contractors need to start blasting almost immediately. Applications include the removal of permanent and

Canadian road safety equipment manufacturer Versilis says that its latest flexible Horizontal HSG-40CW – 12m in length - is crash-tested to AASHTO MASH requirements. The Horizontal HSG-40CW is part of the Montreal area-based company’s SwiftGate series of barriers that have been sold worldwide. Whether the gates are short or long, they can be made to pivot horizontally or vertically. Importantly, says the company, the gates offer increased visibility using a high surface of reflective material and LED ligh

UK-based SRL Traffic Systems has purchased 100 mobile variable message signs from Swarco under an agreement to boost the fleet to 500 rental units. The value of the deal at around US$2.9 million is a significant development for the UK market, said Swarco. SRL is also a manufacturer of portable and temporary traffic lights. The solar-powered signs are equipped with energy efficient LEDs capable of displaying full-colour text and images with no restrictions. SRL will be managing the signs via Swarco’s in

As Belarus opts for its first PPP, contractors should take note of contract nuances when working in CIS countries, explains Ove Arup’s Steve Gilpin Belarus is part of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a regional governmental organisation of 10 ex-Soviet bloc countries. The CIS includes Russia as well as Turkmenistan which is an associate member. Some countries, including Georgia, were part of the CIS but have left the organisation. Arup’s projects in CIS countries have been commissioned by

Transoft Solutions is now offering the AutoTURN technology within the recently released Vectorworks 2019 design and BIM solution. The integration of AutoTURN Online within Vectorworks can deliver faster and simpler workflows for architects and designers who need to assess vehicle manoeuvres within parking lots, garages, loading bays, driveways and other projects. The firm explained that in the past, evaluating whether a design can accommodate the turning paths of vehicles was a time-consuming trial-and-e

Meteorological specialist, Biral, is introducing its new BTD-200 Lightning Warning System. This system is said to be a complete detection and warning package, which has been developed from the Biral range of professional aviation grade lightning detection systems. It can detect reliably the local presence of all forms of lightning out to a range of 35km from the sensor. Designed to be installed and set up by non-technical staff, it comes with a power supply and the essential PC application ‘Lightnin

The firm is introducing an updated version of B2W Schedule with new capabilities for scheduling, dispatching and tracking construction materials. It is also offering significant field log user experience upgrades to B2W Track, the company’s field tracking and analysis software. In addition, the firm has a new B2W Inform app, which allows contractors to use the B2W forms and reporting solution without internet connectivity. B2W CEO and founder Paul McKeon said, “We completed important updates across our

Ghana is giving official approval for a new budget to help develop the country’s road network. The plans call for US$313.5 million to be spend on carrying out 14 major road projects. In all, 381km of roads will be improved. The work will be carried out in Ghana’s Ashanti Region, Brong-Ahafo Region, Eastern Region and Northern Region.

The organisers of the SaMoTer Italian construction machinery exhibition are running a technology award during the run-up to next edition. The exhibition will be held at the Verona Exhibition Centre 21st 25th March 2020. The closing date for entries in the 23rd Innovation Award is 28th October 2019. The event now offers more categories to ensure better representativeness of the construction machinery sector. Construction companies, official representatives or importers, research institutions and bodies, un

A temporary bridge structure provided by Acrow Bridge is maintaining traffic flow for a key crossing in Vermont. The bascule bridge is allowing both vehicular and vessel traffic to pass during the reconstruction work to the North Hero-Grand Isle Drawbridge in Vermont. The US$60 million project involves replacing the historic twin leaf bascule bridge on Lake Champlain. This modular steel bascule bridge is allowing transport to continue to and from the Lake Champlain island towns of North Hero and Grand Isl

The tender process for a key bridge link in Paraguay will commence in 2019. The Paraguayan authorities are working on the terms of the package of works for the project at present. The new bridge will be the second such link connecting Asuncion with Chaco'i. When complete, the new bridge will measure around 450m in length.