Going to bat for the construction industry, Caterpillar Chairman and CEO Doug Oberhelman appeared on CNBC and called for U.S. policymakers to create and fund a strong program to maintain and improve the nation's transportation infrastructure. Caterpillar is based in Peoria, Ill., and has many of its key factories in that ...

(From appeal-democrat.com) The California Transportation Commission has allocated $2.2 billion in new funding, including $41.5 million for a long-awaited, long-term road rehabilitation project planned for Yuba County. Drainage and electrical work is expected to begin in the spring, with primary road construction to start a year later. Proposition 1B, a 2006 voter-approved transportation ...

A study by the American Society for Civil Engineers found that the cost of failing to invest more in the U.S. transportation infrastructure would total $3.1 trillion in lost Gross Domestic Product growth by 2020. The study also said investing only at current levels would cause 877,000 jobs to be lost. ...

(From a release by the American Concrete Pavement Association.) A Web-driven concrete pavement joint noise estimator for use by contractors, consultants, inspectors and others who need to evaluate pavement characteristics efficiently is being made available by the American Concrete Pavement Association. The ACPA Joint Noise Estimator is available as an iPhone / ...

(A release from the National Asphalt Pavement Association.) A new study shows that one road to energy savings could already be under the wheels of our cars: smoother pavements. Dr. Richard Willis, an assistant research professor at Auburn University, reported that modest improvements in the smoothness of pavements could save up ...

New research by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis (HCRA) at the School of Public Health estimates that the additional fine particulate matter emissions that can be traced back to traffic congestion in the nation’s 83 largest urban areas lead to more than 2,200 premature deaths in the U.S. last ...

Illinois contractors received a boost last week when Gov. Pat Quinn unveiled the state’s new $11.5 billion multi-year construction program, which is intended to create 155,000 jobs and spark economic development throughout the state. Driven by the Illinois Jobs Now! capital program, the statewide multi-year plan for fiscal years 2012 through 2017 ...

(The following was written by Joe Vardon for the Columbus Post Dispatch.) The state can use private dollars to help pay for public road and other infrastructure projects, thanks to the $6.8 billion transportation bill that Gov. John Kasich signed into law during a public ceremony yesterday. House Bill 114, which cleared ...

Pete Ruane, president and CEO of the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), says executives in the transportation design and construction industry must tout industry "innovation" success stories to help achieve passage of a robust, multi-year highway/transit authorization bill. In so doing, the industry can help create a new, national ...

A multi-year bill reauthorizing funding for the nation's surface transportation programs will be passed by Congress and signed into law by time Congress moves into the August summer recess, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood predicted earlier this week. LaHood, speaking during a visit to Atlanta, said the bill could be approved despite ...

A coalition of heavy-construction organizations in New York state is working to build a national alliance to block the repeal of guaranteed federal funding for the nation's highway system, an idea proposed by Republicans who hold a majority of seats in the new Congress. The New York coalition includes the General ...

The Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association (IRTBA) hosted its 2010 Contractor of the Year Awards earlier this month, and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), the Illinois Tollway and the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) each recognized companies that have given taxpayers an exceptional return on their investment. The winners were recognized for their adaptability, creativity, cooperation, consideration ...