Costain hails ‘smart’ road boost

CIVIL engineering firm Costain hailed a shift in focus towards “smart infrastructure” such as wifi connected roads as it unveiled a jump in annual profits.

The 150-year-old company notched up pre-tax profits of £19.5m in the six months to June, up 25pc on last year.

Revenues slumped 10pc to £759m, but Costain said that was the result of several rail projects, including Crossrail, coming to an end.