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The Philippine Department of Public Works and Highways aims to restore roads of up to 31,230km during the 2012 financial year.

According to figures from Dutch automotive association and tourism group ANWB, traffic congestion, which is measured by the length of jams multiplied by the length of time of the jam, decreased 27 per cent in the Netherlands in 2011, compared to the averarage across the last five years.

The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) has called on the British government to include measures to boost road and rail network investment in next month’s budget. ICE says the budget, set to be unveiled on 21 March, 2012, needs to encourage pension funds to invest in UK infrastructure projects. The government plans to establish an investment vehicle to pool pension fund assets for new projects under the National Infrastructure Plan. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) estimates that upgrading the U

Italian consortium Nogara Mare is reportedly the favoured bidder in the contract worth around US$2.52billion for the construction and management of the new Nogara-Mare Adriatico motorway in Italy. The motorway will be over 100km long and link the Autobrennero with coastal areas. Nogara Mare was created by Confederazione delle Autostrade, the company promoting the project, with 23% of its ownership belonging to the Italian group Astaldi.

The Danish government has shelved the plans for a road toll scheme for Copenhagen. The decision has been welcomed by opposition parties, and the government is now set increase funding for public transport so that ticket prices can be reduced. However, full details of the increased financing of public transport are yet to be disclosed. A government appointed expert committee will also study how to reduce congestion.

Vinci has won the contract to create the greater Strasbourg western beltway. Sanef was not selected to build the 24km toll motorway despite a lower bid of US$529.8million, as opposed to $661.7million for Vinci. Subventions requested by Sanef were also lower at $26.4million, as opposed to $43.6million for Vinci. The land granted to Vinci for the project is 100 hectares more than Sanef's bid. The offices of the French President and Prime Minister are reported to have played a role in the choice of Vinci for t

A total of 1,314 American children aged 14 and under died in US road crashes in 2009, according to new research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The NHTSA said 179,000 injuries had also been caused to the same child age group following 2009 crashes. The agency says safety seats in passenger cars had been found to reduce the risk of crash deaths for children of four-years-old and below by 54%, and infants by 71%.

The Austrian Industrial Association (IV) has called for a road pricing system under which drivers would pay less for owning a car but more for using it. This could lower CO2 emissions. The IV's general secretary Peter Koren said that currently those who d

Contractors across the globe are being invited to bid for the contract to build the new main road between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The Department of Transport (DoT) in Abu Dhabi says the E311 aims to alleviate traffic congestion on the current E11 main road connecting the two emirates. It will also create new entrances to the city of Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi International Airport, and Yas and Saadiyat Islands. The E311 project is one of the biggest infrastructure projects that Abu Dhabi DoT is working on as part of

The Sichuan Development and Reform Commission plans to spend US$70.16billion on 500 major projects in the Chinese province during 2012. Work on 11 rail projects will begin in 2012. Of those, construction on a 99.27km section of the Kunming-Chengdu line and the 520km Guiyang-Chengdu are due for completion in 2017. This will follow the proposed 2015 completion of a 135.41km section of the Kunming-Chengdu line and the 99.09km Pujiang-Chengdu line, and the earmarked 2016 completion of the 510.5km Chengdu-Xi'an

American construction equipment exports rose by 43% in 2011 to US$23.5billion. The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) says it is encouraged by the significant rise on 2010 exports, which follow on from a 28% increase in exports in 2010 compared to 2009. “Export sales continue to help U.S. construction equipment manufacturers stay open for business and sustain American jobs, especially with the domestic construction sector still recovering,” stated Al Cervero, AEM vice president construction sector

A UK local authority highways chief has pledged not to introduce a blanket night time switch off of street lighting in one English county following an in depth review of the operation. But Staffordshire County Council says it will work with any parish council that would like to reduce some of its lighting overnight, as long as the move is supported by the community. The review also revealed that US$12.9million could be saved over the next 16 years by installing hi-tech dimming equipment in the columns whic

Innovative new technologies being developed by Newcastle University in the UK could help make road use safer for older drivers. This new technology is intended to aid older drivers in staying on the road and retaining their independence. Some older drivers give up, concerned that their reaction times have slowed, but this leads to a social cost with the elderly becoming more isolated. As a possible solution to the problem, the Intelligent Transport team at Newcastle University has developed a navigation sys

Fugro Aperio collected and processed data from up to 7,000km lanes of English trunk roads as part of a just completed Traffic Speed Structural Survey (TRASS) contract. The work, commissioned by TRL on behalf of the Highways Agency (HA), saw the Cambridge-based survey specialist gain information using the HA’s Traffic Speed Deflectometer (TSD). The innovative TSD technology uses Doppler lasers to measure the speed at which the pavement deflects in response to load.

The partnership of national road research centres, FEHRL, is setting out two key strategy elements in a bid to develop an advanced and affordable transport infrastructure. FEHRL says that an effective transport system will provide the basis for economic opportunities. The FEHRL General Assembly (FGA) set out two important strategy elements within its fifth Strategic European Road Research Programme (SERRP V) launched in 2011. One is for the gradual broadening of its scope to transport infrastructure in rai

All nine U.S. Supreme Court justices have backed the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) and refused to widen the scope of the federal Clean Water Act (CWA). ARTBA, the only transport construction association involved in the case, joined with eight other industry associations in filing a claim, urging the Court to overturn a lower court holding that the entire span of three rivers in Montana was “navigable” because certain remote sections are used for recreational pursuits. For trans

Nottinghamshire County Council in the East Midlands region of England is considering a programme of maintenance projects and new building projects worth just under US$560million. The work would take place between 2013 and 2016 and would include a $31.3million project to widen the A453. A further $47million of the building fund could be invested in transport improvements and $18.8million a year may be used for highways maintenance.

Israeli financing looks to be one funding option for the Northern Tunnel project planned in the Russian city of Rostov. The plan calls for a 2.5km tunnel that will be tolled and link city centre with Northern residential area and will help reduce congestion on Nagibin Avenue. This is at present the only large highway linking the city centre with the residential district and is congested at peak periods. The tunnel project is valued at US$252 million and construction work is expected to take six years. The a

A leading US highway construction association has renewed its pledge to work with the federal government to reduce deaths and injuries in roadway construction zones. The American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) said the ‘Work Zone Safety Alliance’ will develop and distribute education material over the next two years aimed at preventing worker injuries and deaths from construction vehicle runovers and backovers. The education drive will also focus on increased outreach to non-English-spe

Q-Free has been awarded AutoPass contracts by the Norwegian Public Roads Administration (NPRA) at a value of over US$5 million. The contracts are related to the E6/E18 Østfold and E6 Øyer-Tretten, and comprise delivery and installation of fully automated toll stations and service and maintenance for five years. Commenting on the contract award, Øyvind Isaksen, Q-Free CEO, said, “It is important for our international activity to have a leading position in our home market, and we will continue to defend this