WSC Topic 1

Big Dig

Background information: The Big Dig was a megaproject in Boston The project’s largest contribution were rerouting some parts of Interstate 93 underground and adding a road from Interstate 90 to Logan International Airport, though other additions included extending and restoring public transport lines.

Purpose: It’s purpose was to alleviate traffic congestion in downtown Boston, improve access to Logan Airport, and reconnect the city with its waterfront.

Budget: Originally projected to cost 2.6 billion, it ended up costing nearly 8 billion

Completed timeframe: Started in 1991, was supposed to be finished in 1998, but ended up finishing in 2007 (15yrs)

Problems: The largest problems with the Big Dig were largely in part due to their substandard materials. Seeing as the concrete and construction materials for the underground tunnels didn’t meet standards (both in overall quality and accurate placement in tunnels), issues including water leaks began arising. One fatal roof collapse is also partially due to this. (Some smaller issues came with lighting and guardrails.)

Channel Tunnel

Background Info: The Chunnel (Channel Tunnel) was more successful in planning and development. This tunnel, connecting the closest points between France and the UK, features separate sections for cars and a built-in high speed rail system. Since its opening in 1994, the tunnel has been profitable.

Budget: Was estimated 4.8 billion (6.2 in 1985 prices), but cost reached 9.5 billion( 14.5 billion in 1994) — overrun of about 80%. — privately financed.

Completed timeframe: construction begani n the late 1980s with tunnel officially opening in May 1994.

Problems; Since then, there have been a few incidents in the area, largely due to one-off occasions where things inside the tunnel would catch on fire. Some train failures also occurred, though plans have been made to circumvent this again. 

California High Speed Rail

Background info: The california high speed rail project is a publicly funded initiative to build a high speed rail system connecting major metropolitan areas in california. It aims to link san fransisco to the los angeles basin in under three hours, with speeds reaching over 200 mph.

Purpose: Connect major metropolitan areas, reduce travel times, reduce congestion.

Budget: Initial estimate was 33 billion, current projection upto 130 billlion.

Complete timeframe: Started in 2015, still ongoing, the first train service is planned for early 2030s.

Problems: big cost overruns, delays — missed deadlines, funding issues — relying heavily on federal funds with limited private investment.

Sejong city

Background info: Officially, sejong special self governing city is south korea’s de facto administrative capital. It was founded by combining parts of South Chungcheong Province and North chungcheong province.

Purpose: Alleviate congestion in Seoul and promote balanced regional development.

Budget: 1.65 trillion Korean won, or 1.2 billion USD

Completed timeframe: Initially started in 2007, should be completed by 2030. the city aims to reach a population of 500,000 by that time

problems: Inadequate public transportation, a lack of vibrant city life, and a struggle to attract a diverse population beyond government employees. It is unable to reach its broader goal of reducing seoul’s dominance and fostering balanced regional development.

Hambantota

Background Info: It is a coastal city and district capital in southern sri lanka, historically significant for its role in martiime trade and as a strategic location.

Purpose: The port’s primary purpose was to serve as a major international shipping hub, particularly for energy services and as a strategic location near major shipping. it aims to alleviate congestion at colombo port and tries to promote industrial development for Sri Lanka.

Budget: 1.3 billion dollars, 85% of it came from a chinese loan.

Completed timeframe: took roughly two years and 10 months — 2008 to 2010

Problems: chinese debt trapping 99 year lease, “String of Pearls” strategy (involving applying political pressure to India and solidifying the country’s dominance in Asia), which has led to some debate.

NEOM

background info; NEOM is a planned futuristic city and economic zone in Saudi Arabia. If ever completed, it would comprise of all of Saudi Arabia’s individual megaprojects, including the much more infamous “Oxagon” and “The Line” projects alongside their other propositions. This giant project, as an autonomous city region, is the core of Saudi Arabia’s goal of distancing its economy from oil moving into the future. ( 9 million people)

Key components;

Oxagon: industrial city — clean energy, manufacturing

The Line: small smart city, no cars no streets no carbon emissions - AI

Trojena: mountain tourism destination - outdoor sports eg year long ski resort

Sindalah: luxury island destination — AI powered systems

Budget: 8.8 Trillion Dollars

Completed timeframe: NEOM’s project proposals first launched in 2017, hoping to complete large parts of an initially smaller scale operation by 2025 and expand it by 2025; the project ended up largely falling behind schedule, however. Much of the city is now hoped to be done by 2039, though the planned area of 26,500km^2 does make this hope quite ambitious.

Problems: the forced relocation of the local Howeitat tribe — violation of international law, saudi arabian interest in Israeli technology

Khazar Islands

Background Information: The Khazar Islands were a planned collection of 41 manmade islands in the Capsian sea located in Azerbaijan (similar to the islands in Dubai). The islands were planned with an airport, numerous city amenities, an F-1 racetrack, and their magnum opus: the Azerbaijan Tower, a 2 billion dollar project to overtake the Burj Khalifa as the tallest building in the world.

Budget: 100 Billion

Completed Timeframe: It was never completed due to the 2015 oil crashes which impacted the economy, and the project developer Avesta owed debts as well — attempts from chinese investors.

Problems: dwindling oil reserves, economic down

Three Gorges Dam

Background information: The Three Gorges Dam is the largest hydroelectricity dam in the world by volume of reservoir, power capacity, and produced energy. In simple, it has the most amount of water, the ability to hold the most energy, and it makes the most energy. Located on the Yangtze River in Hubei province, the approximately 2km long dam runs on gravity; water naturally flows from a reservoir of water down to a river, powering turbines as it goes down.

Purpose/ benefits: cost-wise, the project was successful; it paid for itself within 1 year of full operation. In environmental terms, the power production supplies the equivalent of ~30 million tons of coal every year.

Budget: 30 billion

Completion timeline: 1993 - 2009 — 17 years

Problems: The construction faced large controversies, considering its construction would displace over 1 million people, alongside culturally significant sites and biodiverse habitats. (The dam is considered at fault for the extinction of the Chinese river dolphin). The dam’s construction caused erosion in nearby areas, sitting on a faultline and causing sediment to deposit in the river.

Hong Kong Zhuhai Bridge:

Background Information: The Hong Kong Zhuhai Bridge refers to a series of bridge/tunnel systems connecting Hong Kong, Macau, and Zhuhai (a large city in the Greater bay area). It is currently the longest bridge/connection over water in the world. The bridge reduced travel time between Zhuhai and Hong Kong from 4 hours to 30 minutes by car. The bridge followed the agenda of creating an “free trade zone” in the area.

Budget: initial projections: 7.7 billion ish — became 18.8 billion

Completion Timeframe: 2009 - 2018 — 9 years

Problems: drivers requiring licenses and permits in both region. Resultingly, the bridge is often underused, with quotas on vehicles and special regulations. Recently, some of these have been loosened — in its opening, fewer than 2,000 vehicles passed through the bridge compared to the projected 10,000+ — failed safety tests + lackluster seawall integrity, and ecological impacts.

New Eurasian Land Bridge

Background information: The New Eurasian Land Bridge is part of China’s Belt and Road initiative, often called the Second Eurasian Continental Bridge. It is a rail link between China and Europe, the two connected through rail lines in Central Asia. The new Eurasian Land Bridge, afterwards, began being laid out to avoid Russia entirely.

Purpose: cost effective freight transportation connecting China to europe

Budget: 6 Billion

Completed Timeline: has been evolving over several decades

Problems: Inadequate infrastructure, russia, border crossings

Bertha

What was it: World’s largest tunnel-boring machine, built for Seattle’s underground highway.

• Broke down in 2013 after 4 months—overheating after 1,000 feet.

• Repairs required massive shaft digging, causing ground settlement and building cracks.

• Risky soil (mixed-fill, water table) ignored by some experts.

• Repairs delayed; future breakdowns would be harder to fix.

• Classic case of a megaproject gone wrong—over budget, over time, despite warnings.