With unprecedented expansion in transport demand, increasing traffic congestion and road safety challenges, global infrastructure is set to be central to many nations’ economic development plans.
Construction equipment manufacturers with a road machinery capability have an important role to play in the ambitious infrastructure development programmes of emerging economies. So says Volvo Construction Equipment’s Mr. Pat Olney in a recent presentation to a group of 100 leading international trade journalists. Following Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s approval of a seven-year, $ 570 billion programme to overhaul and expand the country's transportation infrastructure, Mr. Olney, who is president of Volvo CE’s road machinery business, commented that it was the largest infrastructure building scheme Russia has seen since the break up of the USSR.
“Emerging nations realize that their economies’ future growth will be hobbled if they don’t invest in their transport infrastructure,” said Mr. Olney. “In addition to the 17,000 km and 100 airport runways being designed in Russia, China is planning to build over 80,000 km of new highways and India is expected to invest over $300 billion on improving its road network.”
The 2007 addition of paving and compaction machinery to its product range puts Volvo CE in a strong position, providing ‘full line’ ability to sell products across the road building process, from land clearing through excavating, earth moving, base construction and grading – up to the final paved and compacted road surface.
Mr. Olney’s comments came shortly after the announcement of Russia’s largest ever investment programme approved by the government. "If we don't develop infrastructure, we won't have a future," said Mr. Putin. He added that dilapidated transportation networks act as a ‘brake on the economy’. A report to the cabinet by transportation minister Igor Levitin is thought to say that as much as 70% of all railroads, highways, ports and airports are ‘outdated’, and that three million Russians in some 40,000 towns do not have year-round access to roads or railways.
“It’s not just developing nations that need to improve their infrastructure – a third of major roads in the US are in a poor or mediocre condition,” Mr. Olney continued. “While far from unique among the major, largely western countries, the US as the world’s largest economy is a good case in point. According to a report by the American Road Transportation Builders Association, traffic congestion costs the US over $78 billion annually, causing 4.2 billion hours of delay and consuming 11 billion litres (three billion gallons) of fuel each year. “There is also an important safety aspect to the underdevelopment of US transport infrastructure,” continued Mr. Olney. “Poor road conditions contribute to a third of all highway accidents, adding a financial toll of over $200 billion each year to the human cost. In terms of road construction and renovation potential the US is an often overlooked sleeping giant,” said Mr. Olney.
“With truck freight volumes expected to increase by over 65% in the coming years in the US this is also a global issue that will only get worse unless significant investments are made in improving the road network,” Mr. Olney concluded.
July 2008
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