Roadside Real Estate Share Discussion Threads

[wildy1983] 20/3/2024 16:56

Yes , RNS today 20th March apparently selling 952 shares at £6302.53 per share in the subsidiary Cambridge Sleep Sciences to US based CGV Ventures , circa £6.0million. Sale reduces the company's holding to 65% from 75% , hence the 65% has significant valuation ( circa £30-40m ). Big reaction to Roadside's shares today ,up 187% . Hopefully there will be more uptick .

[cyberbub] 20/3/2024 15:20

This is an interesting one, a special situation?

[grupo] 09/7/2019 09:35

Super-strength roads to contain miracle material graphene
Grant Prior 11 mins ago
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Graphene could soon be used to resurface and build new roads.

Highways England chiefs have linked-up with the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC) to see how the wonder material can improve the road network.

Graphene is up to 200 times stronger than steel and just one atom thick.

Highways England believes adding graphene into maintenance and renewals operations has the potential to extend asset life and make the network perform at an “industry changing level.”

They will now work with the GEIC to explore the operational and road user benefit of incorporating graphene into assets such as road surfacing and road markings as well as help to drive the development of a low carbon and digital road network.

Paul Doney, Innovation Director at Highways England said: “We are really excited about the opportunity to explore leading edge materials and what this might lead to for our road network.

“GEIC is at the forefront, having made the discovery here in Manchester, and by building a collaboration with our operations teams who understand the challenges, we are looking to deliver improved safety and performance of our roads.”

Grant Prior

Written by Grant Prior
11 mins ago

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always off the record

[waldron] 17/11/2017 06:39

Vinci has interesting technical arguments to anticipate a recovery of the trend of fond.On will be able to position at the purchase to aim the 90 €.


Synthesis

The
company has solid fundamentals. More than 70% of companies
present a mix of growth, profitability, indebtedness and visibility
weaker.
The company presents an interesting fundamental situation in a short-term investment perspective.


Strong points

The
analysts' forecasts regarding the evolution of the activity are
relatively close. This is the consequence of a good
visibility linked to the group's activity, ie good communication
of the company with the analysts.
Historically, the group publishes activity figures higher than expected.
Analysts recently strongly raised their expectations of turnover.
The analysts covering the file mainly recommend buying or overweighting the stock.
The stock follows a long-term positive long-term trend above the support level of EUR 75.33.


Weak points

Prices are approaching a strong long-term resistance in weekly data, located around 85.83 EUR.
The expected evolution of turnover suggests poor growth over the next few years.

[grupo] 18/10/2017 16:06

Germany's Hochtief confirms $20 billion bid for Spain's Abertis
David Reid | @cnbcdavy
Published 58 Mins Ago Updated 42 Mins Ago CNBC.com









Pau Barrena | Bloomberg | Getty Images

German construction company Hochtief has confirmed a takeover bid for Spanish toll road operator Abertis.

The bid, made at 18.76 euros per share, equates to a total of 17.1 billion euros ($20.1 billion).

Hochtief says it will issue 24.79 million new shares to help fund any takeover.

The Spanish firm ACS is the parent company of Hochtief.

Following the announcement, shares in Hochtief rose more than 3 percent.

The latest bid rivals an earlier offer of 16.3 billion euros from Italian road toll firm Atlantia.
David ReidBlog Writer, CNBC.com

[the grumpy old men] 13/9/2017 07:27

FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS

12/09/2017 | 5:37 p.m.

Vinci (-1.37% to 79.17 euros) and Eiffage (-0.63% to 87.23 euros) signed two of the biggest declines of SBF 120 in a context of strong rebound rates. Barometers of the bond market, the 10-year French and German rates both gain 6 basis points tonight, at 0.69% and 0.39% respectively. Traditionally, BTP groups are considered "proxy" bonds given the high capital intensity of their activities and the fact that they have to borrow heavily to carry out their projects.

This development, however, appears as a pretext to take advantage of values that closed yesterday at new annual summits. The outlook for construction groups such as Vinci and Eiffage is particularly flourishing against the backdrop of accelerating economic growth in the euro zone and in France.

[waldron] 29/10/2012 07:44

..New Road Tax Plan For Motorways And A-Roads
Sky News – 1 hour 34 minutes ago....Email
Print.......
View Photo.New Road Tax Plan For Motorways And A-Roads
....Drivers who use motorways could be charged a higher rate of road tax than those who stick to slower routes.

According to reports, motorists face a two-tier road tax under proposals being considered by the Government.

It has been suggested that drivers could be offered a lower rate of the tax if they agree not to use the country's trunk road network of motorways and major A-roads.

Those paying a higher rate of vehicle excise duty would be free to use any roads.

Proponents say a network of automatic number-plate recognition cameras could be used to catch any drivers who were using the motorways without paying the higher rate.

A Department For Transport (DFT) said: "The department and Treasury are currently carrying out a feasibility study to review new ownership and financing models for the strategic road network.

"This is looking at how best we can secure investment in the network to increase capacity and boost economic growth."

Activists have long sought to explore revenue generation options for road users.

Concepts have included expanding toll booths across the motorway network and a system based on mileage.

The DFT spokesman added: "The Government has made clear it will not implement tolls on existing road capacity and has no plans to replace existing motoring taxes with pay-as-you-go road charging."

..

[waldron] 05/6/2012 20:44

UPDATE: Vinci No Longer Preferred Bidder for Western Strasbourg Bypass
Date : 05/06/2012 @ 19:45
Source : Dow Jones News
Stock : Vinci (DG)
Quote : 32.44 0.34 (1.06%) @ 16:39
Vinci share price Chart Trades Level2



UPDATE: Vinci No Longer Preferred Bidder for Western Strasbourg Bypass
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Vinci (EU:DG)
Intraday Stock Chart
Today : Tuesday 5 June 2012
--French Strasbourg bypass project held back by financing issues
--French Ministry said that Vinci had failed to meet deadlines on bank talks
--The 55-year contract represented investments of around EUR750 million
(Rewrites with comment from French ministry.)

By Nadya Masidlover
PARIS--The French state has withdrawn preferred-bidder status from French construction group Vinci SA (DG.FR, VCISY) for the concession contract for the A355 western Strasbourg bypass after the company did not meet deadlines concerning financing for the project.
In a statement Tuesday, the French Ministry for Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transport and Housing said that despite the deadline for agreements with banks having been postponed twice, Vinci had failed to wrap up talks for financing within the required period.
The company denied Tuesday that it had abandoned the project and said several banks had already confirmed their participation in its financing.
"The extension of the preferred-bidder status beyond [May 28] would have enabled the last two financial institutions to confirm their participation in the project and finalize the financing arrangements within the maximum authorized timeframe," said Vinci in a statement.
The 55-year contract to design, finance, build and operate a new 24-kilometer section of the toll motorway represented total investments of around EUR750 million.
No spokesman at Vinci was available to give further details.
The ministry said that the "environmental difficulties" concerning the project had prevented the European Investment Bank from intervening.
Discussion will now be undertaken in at a local level to find a solution to Strasbourg's transport issues, said the ministry.
-Write to Nadya Masidlover at [e-mail]

[waldron] 16/8/2011 09:15

Highway Spending Often a Dead-End Investment: Edward Glaeser

Illustration by Tim Lahan

By Edward Glaeser Aug 16, 2011 2:00 AM GMT+0200 0 Comments Q.
inShare.1
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Business ExchangeBuzz up!DiggPrint Email ..About Edward Glaeser
Edward Glaeser, a professor of economics at Harvard, is the author of "Triumph of the City: How Our Greatest Invention Makes Us Richer, Smarter, Greener, Healthier and Happier."

More about Edward Glaeser
.There is a time to spend and a time to cut and we are now in an age of austerity. Even since Standard & Poor's downgraded the U.S.'s AAA credit rating earlier this month, some Keynesians still favor more spending. They say the threat that the economy will dip back into recession calls for more public outlay.

They are right that the recovery is weak. Seasonally adjusted unemployment remains at 9.1 percent, and among people older than 20 the rate actually fell from June to July, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Europe's debt problems are unsolved and the U.S. stock market is extraordinarily volatile.

But Congress has made clear it won't respond by spending more money -- and that is probably a good thing. In the past, stimulus funding has been aimed at improving roads, airports and other forms of infrastructure. Yet it's not at all clear that such spending provides enough value for the dollar.

Consider, for example, spending on highways. President Barack Obama's 2012 budget called for investing $556 billion on surface transportation over the next six years.

If we spend an extra $100 billion building roads, we boost the economy and reduce unemployment. But if the $100 billion spent generates only $50 billion worth of value to drivers in the form of safety and faster, smoother commutes, then it's not necessarily worth the price.

Unfortunately, as the Office of Management and Budget noted when it evaluated federal spending on highways, in most cases "funding is not based on need or performance and has been heavily earmarked."

Need for Roads
Fans of infrastructure spending often argue generally that America's great need for improved roads, bridges, airports and the like calls for federal outlays, but their case has never been made convincingly.

The McKinsey Global Institute, for example, has cited relatively low broadband penetration in the U.S., and the nation's world ranking in infrastructure, which fell to 23rd in 2010, from seventh 10 in 2000.

It is true that only 68 percent of American households have broadband, compared with more than 95 percent of South Koreans. But South Korea strongly subsidizes broadband. And it's not clear why the U.S. government should do the same. Why bribe people to download YouTube videos more quickly?

Only 3.1 percent of people who don't have broadband say it's because they lack access to it, according to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Most people say it's because the connection is too expensive, or they are just not interested.

Our infrastructure ranking isn't all that bad in comparison with our standing on budget-balancing: 118th, right ahead of Romania. On wastefulness in government spending, the U.S. ranks 68th, just behind Ghana. These numbers don't exactly suggest it would be a good idea to borrow more money to spend on tunnels and dams.

Of course, we still need to fix our infrastructure, but we ought to find ways to invest in it more economically. Why not, for example, get users to pay? Many roads and airports, for example, benefit primarily the people of a single state. So it would make more sense to have state governments foot the bill.

Congress has made it clear that it wants to not only avoid new stimulus spending but also find ways to further trim the budget. The way to do this wisely in a slow economy is to overhaul government. And in doing so, we should aim at our great entitlements: Social Security and Medicare.

Raise Retirement Age

If it weren't for the politics involved, reducing spending on Social Security would be easy: Just increase the retirement age. Cuts to Medicare, on the other hand, would be hard both politically and conceptually. I can't wait to see the proposal produced by the Congressional supercommittee that is being formed as a result of the recent deal to raise the debt limit.

A good cost-benefit analysis of our various defense programs is in order, too.

After that, we are left with four big budget categories that aren't related to entitlements or national security: health and human services; education; transportation; and housing and urban development. This spending includes some investment and some humanitarian relief. Money for education serves both functions, given that America's economic future depends on its human capital. So education isn't a good target for deep cuts.

On the contrary, saving money by reducing school spending would be penny-wise, pound foolish. Both the "Race to the Top" and "No Child Left Behind" programs help ensure access to decent schooling. Massachusetts lifted its limit on charter schools partly to qualify for "Race to the Top" funds.

Can spending on infrastructure possibly be as important? Certainly, trucks need to be able to move swiftly throughout America, but truckers should be able to pay for their own roads. Good airports are also important, but air passengers can finance their own amenities. We shouldn't have to subsidize people to drive or take planes.

Rethink Poverty Programs
Compared with most advanced economies, the U.S. spends relatively little on social safety. To cut our spending on food stamps, housing vouchers or temporary assistance for needy families would be to cause real suffering. The right approach is not to keep the same system and spend less, but to rethink our approach to poverty. We could start by consolidating three massive programs, now each run by a separate department: Agriculture handles food stamps, Housing and Urban Development runs the housing program, and Health and Human Services manages Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. A single entity should be charged with delivering the most effective combination of aid our budget can buy.

Needless to say, savings could be found in many other programs, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and agricultural subsidies. Tax breaks for things such as ethanol and low-income housing could certainly be reduced.

None of these reductions should happen right now, of course, while the economy remains very weak. But Congress can enact budget cuts that are phased in as the recovery progresses.

We can create a better government, if we are careful to trim spending where costs exceed benefits. Let's pull out our green eyeshades and start calculating.

(Edward Glaeser, an economics professor at Harvard University, is a Bloomberg View columnist. He is the author of "Triumph of the City." The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the writer of this article: Edward Glaeser at [e-mail].

To contact the editor responsible for this article: Mary Duenwald at [e-mail].

[grupo guitarlumber] 13/3/2011 09:54

Philippines May Raise $4.6 Billion to Help Fund Roads, Rails
March 13, 2011, 4:57 AM EDT
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e-mail this story print this story 0diggsdiggadd to Business Exchange By Clarissa Batino

March 13 (Bloomberg) -- The Philippines plans to raise as much as 200 billion pesos ($4.6 billion) from state-run financial institutions to help fund roads, railways and ports, Economic Planning Secretary Cayetano Paderanga said.

"We want to tap the liquidity in the domestic market and avoid currency risks," Paderanga said in an interview late yesterday in Cagragay Island in Luzon, where he spoke before a group of Philippine fund managers. The Asian Development Bank is advising the government on creation of the fund, he said.

National Development Co., the country's investment agency, will probably issue debt to state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines, Land Bank of the Philippines, the Government Service Insurance System and the Social Security System to create the fund, Paderanga said. The four financial institutions may, in turn, also sell securities, he added.

The Southeast Asian nation will ask private industry to build $1 billion worth of roads and railways starting this year, to help meet a growth target of as much as 8 percent.

Budget deficits in 22 of the past 26 years have limited government spending on infrastructure, prompting President Benigno Aquino to start a $16 billion five-year development plan to bolster investment.

The government may make funding of as long as 25 years available to approved infrastructure projects, Paderanga said. National Development may start issuing bonds this year and will raise funds only when needed, he said.

Development Bank plans to sell $300 million of dollar bonds, President Francisco Del Rosario said March 7.

The infrastructure being lined up won't immediately bolster growth "but it will help achieve sustainable expansion on the longer term," Paderanga said.

Inflation, Growth

The government is monitoring how rising oil and food prices will affect consumption and growth, Paderanga said. Inflation accelerated to a nine-month high in February.

"Five percent growth this year is something we can attain as the trend is still holding," he said. "It's a decent number. We're observing developments" including Middle East tension and the impact of the earthquake in Japan, he said. The economy grew 7.3 percent in 2010, the fastest pace in more than three-decades.

The worst earthquake on record in Japan, the world's third- biggest economy, may affect Philippine growth and inflation, ABS-CBN cited central bank Governor Amando Tetangco as saying yesterday.

The Philippines has lagged neighbors in attracting foreign direct investments, luring $1.95 billion in 2009 compared with $4.88 billion for Indonesia and $5.95 billion for Thailand, according to the United Nations 2010 World Investment Report.

"Our savings rate is higher than our investment rate," Paderanga told members of the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines yesterday. "This is quite embarrassing," he said.

--With assistance from Max Estayo in Manila. Editors: Paul Tighe, Jim McDonald

1005Z PM 1021Z PM 1018Z PM 1019 PM

To contact the reporter for this story: Clarissa Batino in Manila at [e-mail]

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Tighe at [e-mail]

[waldron] 28/2/2011 13:20

EU Moves Toward Supporting Infrastructure Project Bonds
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The European Union took its first step Monday towards launching an initiative aimed at attracting more private financing for infrastructure projects in the 27-nation bloc.

The European Commission launched a public consultation Monday for the program, which would see the EU executive share the risk of certain private infrastructure projects with the European Investment Bank.

With the EU and EIB taking on part of the risk, companies seeking to raise money in financial markets would be able to issue debt at higher credit ratings. Such project bonds could then attract capital from more cautious investors, such as pension funds and insurance companies.

"The main purpose is to really make senior bonds, project bonds attractive for long-term institutional investors," said Philippe Maystadt, president of the European Investment Bank, at a press conference in Brussels.

The deadline for the public consultation is May 2, but the program isn't likely to launch until after 2014.

In a statement, the commission said contributions would be capped to protect the EU against liabilities, although it wouldn't specify exactly how much the EU budget could be exposed to this program. Also, projects with low or no revenue will continue to need grants.

"As part of our comprehensive economic strategy, we need to increase investment in such projects that promote structural change and help put our economies on the path to sustainable growth," said European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn.

He added that with most national public budgets under stress as a result of the global financial crisis, the EU needed to help fund projects that have a common interest.

The EU estimates investment needs of between EUR1.5 trillion to EUR2 trillion for Trans-European Transport Networks, the energy sector, and information and communication technologies.

-By Riva Froymovich, Dow Jones Newswires, [phone]; [e-mail]

[bigt20] 25/4/2010 21:07

Lets extract more cash from Joe public......

[bigt20] 23/4/2010 23:24

Vince Cable's: 'Tackling the fiscal crisis: a recovery plan for the UK',
dated September 2009 .

Bottom of page 52 - theres a comment about introducing road pricing in the future.

The question is, will you have to pay the Road Fund Tax too?

[ariane] 06/10/2009 12:31

EU Sets Rules For Electronic Payment Of Road Tolls Across EU





BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- The European Commission Tuesday established rules to encourage a single system for electronic toll payments on European Union roads.

Several E.U. countries use electronic payments on toll roads, but these systems generally aren't useable across the bloc's borders, according to the commission, the E.U.'s executive arm.

A road trip to Denmark from Portugal requires five or more on-board units on a vehicle's dashboard, the commission said.

In the U.S., by contrast, E-ZPass, an electronic toll-payments system designed to link New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, now works with toll roads in 11 other states.

The commission wants a single E.U. system in place for heavy trucks and passenger buses within three years, with wider availability for passenger cars within five years.

"The European Electronic Toll Service will enable road users to easily pay tolls throughout the whole European Union thanks to one subscription contract with one service provider and one single on-board unit," European Commissioner for Transport Antonio Tajani said in a statement.

-By Adam Cohen, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]

[hectorp] 18/2/2007 13:42

The 1.5M Road Pricing Petition faces hostility from the Cabinet.

Douglas Alexander does not think much of the 1.5 M people who signed the petition.
According to Scotland on Sunday, ".. impied that many of you who signed up to the petition had little idea of what you were doing. You are unaware of the issues. You don't appreciate the scale of the transportation difficulty ...
You had swallowed the propoganda of a rabble of petrol-heads ( yes!) who had employed rat-like internet cunning. "
'He didn't quite SAY you were all thick, but that was the only possible inference'
Norman Harper, reporter, Motoring page of the Business Suppliment.


In the same paper is a report that the Scottish Executive will attempt to bring in Road Pricing alongside an abandonment of Road Vehicle Licence Duty in Scotland BEFORE Westminster. There would also be a reduction in Scottish pump price as licence duty would also reduce there. If it were introduced in Scotland it would inevitably fowwow in England and Wales. A price of £1.26 per mile is advocated for trunk roads /motorways at peak times. WHihc 'may well see thousands of cars taking to single-carriage country roads toa void payment' a move that would greatly increase accidents.

[knowing] 19/1/2007 19:41

The idea of tracking every vehicle at all times is sinister and wrong. Road pricing is already here with the high level of taxation on fuel. The more you travel - the more tax you pay.

It will be an unfair tax on those who live apart from families and poorer people who will not be able to afford the high monthly costs.

Please Mr Blair - forget about road pricing and concentrate on improving our roads to reduce congestion.

[grupo] 10/12/2005 18:02

Vinci swoops to conquer in French toll-road sell-off


 


  By : Ross Tieman in Toulouse December 11, 2005  


FRENCH construction group Vinci will this week emerge as Europe's largest operator of toll roads, carrying off the plum in a E15bn ($17.5bn, £10bn) auction of French state owned toll-road assets.

The company has bid E6bn for 51% of France's biggest toll-road company, Autoroutes du Sud de la France. A successful bid will make Vinci the European leader, with 4,104km of roads under management. It would push it ahead of Italy's Autostrade, controlled by the Benneton family which hitherto enjoyed sector leadership with 3,408km network and a capitalisation of E11.3bn. Vinci already controls France's fourth largest toll-road company Cofiroute.

Autostrade is hoping to improve its position through its minority position in a consortium bid, worth E4.8bn, for 72% of French second largest operator Groupe APRR. The Italian group has teamed up with the French state investment bank, Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (CDC), and insurers AGF, Predica and AXA to bid for APRR, which operates 2,260km running from Paris down to the Rhône Valley and Côte d'Azur.

French finance minister Thierry Breton may be tempted to give second prize in his selloff to French construction group Eiffage, builder and operator of the spectacular Millau Viaduct. Eiffage has teamed up with Australia's Macquarie Investment Group to make a rival bid for a controlling stake in APRR, a E6bn company twice its size.

Another beneficiary from the sell-off looks to be Abertis Infrastructuras, which operates 1,574km of Spanish toll roads, 68% of the country's network. Controlled by La Caixa bank and construction group ACS, Barcelona-based Abertis is an aggressive consolidator, owning 7% of Autostrade and 10% of Portuguese quoted toll-road group Brisa. Abertis, backed also by the CDC, Predica and AXA, plus Peugeot family holding FFP, has outbid all comers in the auction of Sanef, the state-controlled French road company that takes motorists south and east from Calais, offering E4bn for the 76% stake on offer.

Adding Sanef's 1,743km network will almost double the size of Abertis' operations and confirm the global ambitions of a group that runs two shadow toll roads in Britain, the 21km A1-M and 52km A419/417, as well as 433km in Latin America.

Thanks to the Continental European toll-road tradition, mainland road operators and construction groups are emerging at the head of a stock market sector that offers pre- dictable revenues, surprising growth prospects through diversification into management of other infrastructure assets and the possibility of more consolidation.

Under French rules, winners in the government auction will be obliged to bid for minorities in all three quoted road operators. Investors in Sanef, floated this spring, will see its shares valued more than 30% above the price they paid, and those who bought ASF and APRR shares earlier will also see a tidy profit crystallised. But in practice, each winner is likely to keep the quote.

To the embarrassment of the French government, Vinci boss Antoine Zacharias positioned himself to be the sole bidder for ASF by scooping up 23% of its shares in the market after it was floated in 2002.

That audacity will now pay off as he extends its European horizons. In addition to controlling Cofiroute, Vinci has 42% of the Dartford crossing operator, as well as owning and operating the two Severn toll bridges between Bristol and Cardiff.

The consolidation of transport infrastructure operators will take a leap forward this week, but that won't be the end of it.

[waldron] 29/11/2005 14:19

The great toll-road test drive
Ray Massey, Daily Mail
29 November 2005
CONTROVERSIAL pay-as-you-drive tolls took a leap forward yesterday with the announcement of seven pilot schemes costing £7m.

It is the first practical step towards Labour's plan of reducing congestion by pricing millions off the roads and could eventually see charges of up to £1.30 a mile on the busiest stretches at peak times.


The announcement came as business bosses at the CBI conference in London criticised the Government for presiding over a 'decrepit' and declining transport system after eight years in power.


Gridlock alone is costing UK business an estimated £20bn a year.


Yesterday Transport Secretary Alistair Darling said that local authorities in Somerset, Cambridgeshire, Durham, Manchester, Shropshire, Tyne & Wear and the West Midlands will share £7m from an £18m fund set up to develop public transport and cut congestion.

The Government aims to use the trials to develop a national toll system by about 2014.


Although motorists will not be charged at this stage, when the first fully-operational regional pilot starts in five years, drivers there will be.


Cars will be fitted with an electronic 'black-box' - a tiny computer hidden in the dash board containing details of the make, size, owner - and a billing address.


They will clock up charges like taxi meters, though costs will vary depending on the time and congestion level.




Two main tracking systems are being explored. One uses existing satellite navigation technology to check the location of every vehicle.


Another is the so-called 'tag and beacon' method where a car's movement is monitored by roadside beacons. The two biggest trials will be a £2.6m West Midlands scheme and a one in Greater Manchester costing £1.25m.


The Manchester trial includes measures such as road charging and workplace parking levies.


The West Midlands scheme is looking at a 'innovative pricing techniques' different from London's congestion charge. It costs £8 a day to enter the capital.


Motorists currently pay more than £43bn a year in road taxes, including fuel and vehicle excise duty. Mr Darling says the pay-as-you drive tolls will replace current road tax and petrol duty - though sceptics are doubtful.


He said local schemes were essential to 'the development of a national road-pricing scheme'. Mr Darling told the CBI national conference in London: 'I am convinced that without more radical measures, including more effective demand management and actively managing traffic flows, road congestion will get worse. That is why I've been very clear about the need to look at road pricing.'


Mr Darling supported extending the M6 Toll road from Birmingham to Manchester. He also welcomed the new hi-tech M42 with variable speed limits near Birmingham where motorists face fines if they exceed the lower limits enforced at busy times.


CBI director general Sir Digby Jones said: 'It is clear that business still finds it far too difficult to get its goods to market and its people to work. The Government must ensure more is done now to improve the transport network.'


Tory Transport spokesman Alan Duncan said: 'Eight years after coming to power, Labour's pledge to make Britain's transport system the rival of any in Europe is looking pretty hollow.'

[grupo guitarlumber] 23/8/2005 07:23

French toll road selloff draws 18 bids, led by French, Spanish cos UPDATE

(updates with details of bidders)
PARIS (AFX) - The government said it received 18 non-binding bids for the
state's holdings in France's toll motorways, with French and Spanish transport
and construction companies heavily represented.
In an overnight statement, the Finance Ministry said it was pleased by the
"high" number of bids for its 50.3 pct stake in Autoroutes du Sud de la France
(ASF), 70 pct stake in Autoroutes Paris-Rhin-Rhone (APRR) and 75 pct stake in
the Societe des Autoroutes du Nord et de l'Est de la France (Sanef).
Companies that chose to declare their bids overnight included Autostrade
SpA, Le Figaro reported. The Italian motorway operator joined a French
consortium bidding for the stake in APRR also grouping state-owned Caisse des
Depots et des Consignations (CDC), AGF, AXA, and Credit Agricole.
That bid will be pitted against one other declared candidate for APRR:
Eiffage and its Australian partner Macquarie.
Le Figaro also said Vinci SA confirmed it is bidding for overall control of
its ASF affiliate.
Meanwhile in Madrid, Expansion cited Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas
SA, Sacyr Vallehermoso SA and Abertis Infraestructuras SA as all saying that
they are participating in the sell-off.
The financial daily said Sacyr presented a bid for APRR - via its Itinere
unit -, adding that FCC declined to specify which operator it is bidding for.
Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte SA declined to comment
on whether it is presenting an offer, the newspaper said.
Today's Financial Times said without naming sources that Itinere had bid for
both APRR and Sanef, while ASF has attracted at least one Spanish bid.
The French government, which hopes to raise at least 10 bln eur from the
operation, will select the winners in the autumn.
It said it will choose preferred bidders based on the price, strategy,
labour impact and public service guarantees they are proposing.
Though it declined to name any of the candidates, the ministry said its
success in attracting 18 candidates making offers for shares in one or more of
the groups was thanks to its "open and transparent" auction method.
The government has said it will not name the bidders until the autumn, but
according to a French radio report it may do so in the coming 48 hours.
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