Geotechnical characterization of cost overrun drivers in highway projects

Amadi, AI; Higham, AP

Abstract

Infrastructure projects typically face far higher levels of cost overrun than any other form of construction or civil engineering project. An expansive range of research identifying theoretical and technical explanations for this negative trend has emerged from academe. One of the most contentious explanations for this phenomenon suggests strategic misrepresentation on the part of construction professionals and other stakeholders is at the root of this problem. Led by the seminal work of Flyvbjerg et al (2002) this body of literature espouses that cost overruns stem from deliberate deception by clients and their professional advisors as a result of both corruption and politically induced malpractice. Yet this view is challenged by those advocating more technical explanations for cost overrun. Suggesting the unintentional triggering of Latent Pathogens’, which lay dormant in the complex interactive processes of infrastructure projects, lead to a series of events that culminate in cost overrun. In an attempt to better understand the impact of latent pathogens on the accuracy of project estimates in the geologic setting of the Niger Delta, cost data gathered from 61 completed highway projects has been comprehensively analysed to determine the primary causes of cost variance. The results identify that latent pathogens such as heterogeneous ground conditions and non-adherence to geotechnical best practices account for the majority of the recorded variance between the initial estimates and the projects' final account.

Citation

Amadi, A., & Higham, A. (2016). Geotechnical characterization of cost overrun drivers in highway projects. In Proceedings of the Thirty-Second ARCOM Annual Conference 2016 (311-320). ARCOM

• End Date: Sep 7, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Sep 5, 2016
• Publication Date: Sep 5, 2016
• Deposit Date: Feb 1, 2017
• Pages: 311-320
• Book Title: Proceedings of the Thirty-Second ARCOM Annual Conference 2016
• ISBN: 9780995546301
• Publisher URL: http://www.arcom.ac.uk/-docs/proceedings/1ac0218c36fba29ad932f9824ce162b2.pdf
• Additional Information: Event Type : Conference