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Parsons Brinckerhoff has been appointed the programme management consultant to Ashghal, the public works authority of Qatar. It will work on a QAR 30 billion (US$8 billion) programme focusing on the construction and upgrade of local road and drainage projects throughout the country over a five-year period.

Organisers of the Interoute&Ville 2012 being held in Lyon, France later this year say they are set to welcome 200 exhibitors, 7,000 professional visitors and 700 delegates. Held every two years and acclaimed internationally, the exhibition is dedicated to materials, equipment and technologies for streets, roads, highways and cities, bringing together professionals who work in the fields of infrastructures and land use planning. This year, organisers are creating a ‘smart infrastructure village’ to assist co

Mexico’s newly opened Baluarte Bridge crosses the Baluarte River in the Sierra Madre mountain range in the north of the country. The 1.12km long bridge is 403m high at its central point, making it the highest cable-stayed structure in the world, and a Guinness Book of Records entrant. It is part of a new highway connecting Mazatlan on Mexico’s Pacific Coast with Durango.

African heads of state have endorsed the launch of the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), a multi-billion dollar initiative that will run through until 2040. Following their 18th summit, held in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, they approved the implementation of the recommendations in the study on PIDA.

Carlisle, in north-west England, has seen as 20% reduction in congestion since the opening of the city’s US$284million (£176m) Northern Development Route in February this year. Around 10,000 vehicles a day are using the new road, which is broadly in line with the predictions made by highways engineers when building a case to construct a new route connecting the A595 with the M6 around the western flank of the city. Traffic counters positioned on the new road show an average of 9,583 vehicles a day along the

Transport Infrastructure Vietnam 2012 has been organised by IQPC in partnership with the local authorities and will be held in Hanoi from 17-18 April, 2012. Further details can be found at www.transportinfrastructure-vietnam.com. A huge investment by Vietnam’s Ministry of Transport will see over US$5 billion spent on the country’s road transport infrastructure by 2020.

The Egyptian Government is opening the tender process for the Rod el Farag highway in July 2012. The highway project is expected to cost US$1 billion to construct and will be carried out in two stages. One section will run from Alexandria Desert Road to the Cairo Ring Road. Meanwhile the second section will run from the Cairo Ring Road to the eastern side of the Nile-Shoubra area and the Al Ismailia Canal Road.

In China plans are underway for a new expressway connecting Luohu and Futian districts in Shenzhen. The US$1.58 billion project still has to be approved by the authorities in Shenzhen city. Of note is the plan to build the majority of the 20.3km expressway as an underground road. Once it is complete, the new link is expected to reduce congestion in both districts. Meanwhile a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Company Limited (CCCC) has secured the LM2 section contract for the 20.5km Fanshi-Day

Financing is being provided by Australian Government for the Pacific Highway upgrade project. In all some US$3.6 billion (A$3.56 billion) of Federal Government funds will go towards the works on the condition that the New South Wales State Government provides an equal amount. In all $7.2 billion will be needed to upgrade the Pacific Highway.

A total of US$6.27billion is to be spent on 82 highway schemes in Pakistan. In addition to the schemes, set to be implemented by the National Highway Authority (NHA), a further 14 projects worth $1.03billion are also in the pipeline. Over the next five to seven years, the NHA’s National Trade Corridor (NTC) programme plans to lower transport cost, road fatalities and travelling time.

Construction company and transport infrastructure operator OHL Mexico is planning a US$836.27million capital investment. The major sum is 28% more than the capital investment undertaken by the firm in 2011, but less than what was spent in 2010. Around half of the planned investment for 2012 will be channelled into the north urban highway.

The tender to construct of the Struma motorway in Bulgaria has attracted interest from several international companies. The near US$130million EU funded project, which will link the Bulgarian capital Sofia with the Greek border, is expected to be completed within 27 months of the day a successful bidder is announced. Among companies interested in the project are Greek firms Aktor, GEK Terna and J&P Avax; Spanish firm FCC Construction; Bulgarian company SK 13 Patstroy; Strabag of Austria; and the Italian fi

England’s motorway network is not safe enough to have the speed limit raised to 80mph, according to a new report from the Road Safety Foundation (RSF). Titled ‘Unfit for 80’, the report says poorly-maintained and inadequate roadside protection and the rapidly rising risk of shunt crashes from the sheer volume of traffic using England’s motorways are key factors of safety concern. The RSF document has been published while the Government continues to consider a review of the motorway speed limit. Last autumn,

An Interview with PRS-Med’s VP of Business Development and Marketing Hadas Levin by Chris Kelsey The year 1977 has become a watershed year for polymeric construction materials. Dr. J.P. Giroud coined the terms ‘geotextile’ and ‘geomembrane’ in a key paper at the First International Conference on Geosynthetics; and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) published a report on its testing of cellular confinement systems (first undertaken in Vicksburg, Mississippi in 1975). The investigations in Mis

According to online travel agency ab-in-den-urlaub.de around five million German cars are taken by their owners on European holidays each year. However, following a survey, the company has calculated that 515,874 parking tickets with a value of €53.6 million were sent to German drivers from outside Germany during 2009. Ironically, Germany generally sends fewer fines to drivers from other countries.

The city of Coventry in central England is to benefit from over £64 million (€77.25 million) to replace the majority of its street lighting. Regional and Local Transport Minister, Norman Baker said: “This is very good news for Coventry. Better lighting means a reduction in the fear of crime, less light pollution and a safer, more user-friendly night time environment for everyone.” Coventry City Council, which is promoting the project, has signed individual PFI contracts with Balfour Beatty.

Northern Ireland construction company, Lagan Construction, is celebrating its part in two major infrastructure projects in Ireland. The company said that the openings of the A1 dual carriageway bypass at Newry, Northern Ireland, and the Limerick Tunnel, Republic of Ireland, were major achievements, and had employed 350 people over the past four years. The €138 million Newry bypass, commissioned by the Roads Service in December 2007 and completed five months ahead of schedule, was delivered by Amey Lagan

World heritage body UNESCO has given its approval to plans for a e40 million road bridge near Germany’s world-famous Lorelei Rock. The bridge, crossing the River Rhine at St Goarshausen, will be the first on an 85km stretch between Koblenz and Mainz in the Mittelrheintal Valley, for which there is a preservation order. It has been estimated that a tunnel under the river (as an alternative) would cost up to €70 million.

Wacker Neuson Group (WN) achieved its higher ever revenue quarter in the first three months of 2012. The €274million revenue recorded in Q1 2012 was a 29.3% rise on the €211.8million posted over the same period of 2011. “The compact equipment segment and the Americas region were our two strongest growth drivers, reporting revenue gains of 51% and 34% respectively relative to the previous year’s quarter,” said Cem Peksaglam, chief executive of WN. “Our expansion strategies are gaining traction. Despite gene

Norphonic emergency roadside telephones (ERT) have been selected for the Hardanger Bridge, one of the world’s longest suspension bridges, crossing the picturesque Hardangerfjord in southwestern Norway. The Hardanger Bridge will be among of the longest suspension bridges in the world, even longer than the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, with a total suspension-span of 1310 meters and will significantly improve the connection between Norway’s two largest cities (Oslo and Bergen). Norphonic was awarded