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New vehicle tax regulations have been passed in China, which are intended to boost the market for electric vehicles (EVs). A recent China State Council executive meeting passed the second draft regulations of China's Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law, a move designed to support the market for new energy vehicles.

Poland's most important infrastructure project of the past few years, a new 106 km section of the A2 motorway Segment II between Owiecko on the German border and Nowy Tomyol, opened this week, six months ahead of schedule.

The number of fatalities in traffic accidents in Spain has dropped by more than 50 per cent between 2001 and 2010 from 5,517 to 2,478. In total, the ten years saw 41,665 people lose their lives on Spanish roads while 205,774 were seriously injured.Stop Accidentes, a road safety association, has asked the new government to maintain a total commitment to keeping road safety a priority and to complete the Strategic Road Safety Plan 2011-2020 which had been on the previous government's agenda.

McCain has announced another successful contract for its ATC eX 2070 traffic signal controllers. The contract for the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDoT) includes more than 100 ATC 5.2b compliant controllers as well as a comparable number of 332 traffic controller cabinets, and underlines the importance of adhering to current standards.As McCain points out, advanced transportation controller (ATC) standards assist state and local governments in the early deployment of ITS technology in both urban a

The authorities in Morocco are now assessing 13 bids submitted in the tender for a new highway between El Jadida and Safi. The 141km road will cost some US$640 million to build. The project will be divided into four sections, the 20.6km El Jadida-Jorf Lasfar stretch, the 39.2km Jorf Lasfar-Sidi Smail stretch, the 38.85km Sidi Smail-Oualidia stretch and the 43.5km Oualidia-Safi stretch. The road will include six junctions and a toll barrier. The contract will be divided between the winning operators selected

French president Nicolas Sarkozy, during a ceremony highlighting road safety which rewards municipalities and departments for their efforts in the fight against road accidents, has announced that from spring next year, every car in France will have to carry a breathalyser.

The Israel National Roads Company has published the tender documents for the upgrading of road No 4 between Ashdod port and the Greater Tel Aviv region. The project involved widening the road by adding a third lane in both directions between Ashdod and Rishon LeZion.

Construction machinery and equipment sales worldwide are predicted to be up by 14.7 % in 2011, according to the annual business outlook survey by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM).

The US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) yesterday launched a solicitation under its Technology Partnerships programme that aims to help highway industry innovations make the leap from promising prototypes to market-ready products. Each grant award will range from US$250,000 to $1,000,000 for up to two years of performance, to fund the critical final steps in developing technologies with potential to improve highway quality and safety or reduce construction congestion. The programme also promotes partne

Concern has been raised at the risks faced by older drivers following the publication of a report produced jointly by research group TRIP and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). The report reveals that older drivers are more likely to be killed in intersection crashes than young drivers. Data for 20120 from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that 37% of fatal accidents involving drivers aged 65 and over involved an intersection. B

Discussions are underway in Switzerland at present over options for maintaining and upgrading the Gotthard Road Tunnel in the 2020-2025 period. One option is likely to cost some €539.65 million (CHF 650 million), requiring the tunnel to be closed for a 30 month period. The other, is likely to cost €752 million and will see the work carried out the necessary work in stages over a 42 month stretch. For this second option, the tunnel would remain open during the summer period so as to allow it to carry the hig

Image Sensing Systems (ISS) has amended its agreement with its long-time partner, Econolite Control Products, to expand the exclusive North American manufacturing and distribution agreement to include the RTMS radar product line effective in 2012 after a short transition period.

Collection of motorway tolls in the Czech Republic will increase by 25 per cent to US$420 million in 2011, according to the Roads and Motorways Directorate (RSD). The average monthly collection is about $35.75 million.

Brazilian Construction company Odebrecht says it aims to use revenues generated from its new US road construction contract and further potential Stateside work to boost its global turnover. The company’s new US$45.8million contract involves the renovation of the Sam Houston Tollway between Route 59 and Route 288 in the southern area of Harris County, Texas. The US market currently accounts for 1% of Odebrecht's turnover in the construction sector but the firm is also keen to win other Texas contracts, a

Danish traffic experts are urging politicians in Copenhagen to opt for road pricing instead of the planned ring road. They point out that GPS-based road pricing is more cost efficient than a ring road, and can be introduced in just three to five years.

Civic leaders in the English city of Oxford are planning to apply for a traffic regulation standard that will enable it to enforce a Low Emission Zone within the city centre. It will mean buses and coaches must comply with Euro V standards for nitrogen oxide emissions before 1 January, 2014, although Euro IV vehicles will be permitted to operate until 31 December, 2015. Although a few low-frequency routes will be exempt, most bus and coach operators will have to replace vehicles or equip them with exh

Swedish company Edeva, which was hived off from Prodelox, has successfully tested a new traffic calming method in Linköping Sweden. The technology, called Actibump, monitors traffic approaching a dangerous junction and if cars are exceeding the speed limit a metal trough is activated in the road that cars then bounce over. The trough is six centimetres deep, which the developers say is deep enough for drivers to notice but does not cause any physical damage to either the car or its occupants.

Work is starting on the Dos Hermanos Bridge that links Old San Juan to other sections of the city in Puerto Rico.

South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) has received US$750.71million from the government for its Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP). The cash injection will reduce toll fees for motorists after their introduction on highways on 30 April, 2012. The fees will be ZAR 550 per month for light vehicles and motorcycles. Light vehicles with fitted e-tags will pay ZAR 0.30 per km, while non-articulated trucks must pay ZAR 0.75 per km, motorcycles ZAR 0.20 per km and articulated trucks ZAR 1.51 per km.

A draft National ITS Industry Strategy developed through extensive industry and government stakeholder consultation has been released for public comment by ITS Australia. It encompasses road, rail, sea and air transport from 2012 to 2017. Its purpose is to improve the safety, economic and environmental performance of Australia's transport networks by capitalising on state of the art ITS technologies and integrating those technologies across the networks. ITS Australia CEO Susan Harris said the strategy f