- The irony is that at least one local group will benefit during the wall’s construction: Mexicans. During the building process, a good portion of payments may flow to Mexican workers and construction companies. Jose Garza of the Workers Defense Project, a labor support organization in Texas, told the New York Times that, due to the demographics of the local construction workforce, “a significant bit” of the workforce will likely be undocumented.
The history of novel government run infrastructure projects leads me to believe that if you take the high end estimate of $40 billion and double it you will be close to the final cost of project after it's been abandoned due to mismanagement and infeasibility.
Up here in Seattle, if you follow our ridiculous tunnel with any sincerity, you tend to find quotes from a guy named Bent Flyvbjerg (I think he's from France). The exact quote is on pp 3. Of 40 megaprojects: - 1 was under budget - 5 were within 20% of budget - overruns of 50-100% are common
Flyvbjerg is a well-regarded name in transportation literature. One of my professors actually co-wrote the thrilling sequel to that book. While megaprojects tend to overrun far beyond originally perceived costs, infrastructure projects in general and averaged over decades go 'only' 20-25% over budget.
I thought the champion was the Sydney Opera House, at 10 years behind schedule and 1400% over budget. Apparently the honor belongs to Olympic Stadium, Montreal.
Nuclear power plants are always good money pits. My personal favorite is Marble Hill that went from an estimated $1.4B to $7B and was abandoned after spending $2.5B. Not quite the same thing because it was never finished. Are you still paying for the Washington Public Power Supply System nuclear abandonments from 1982?
Well, Hanford Cleanup still continues to this day... with infrequent moments of true panic... Footnote: An ex-girlfriend's grandfather was rehired a few years ago to go back out to the site and try to retrace his late-night nuclear-waste-burying escapades. Apparently his bosses would get him up in the middle of the night, put him in the backhoe, then they'd drive randomly out into the desert, dig a hole, drop some barrels in, cover it up all nice and pretty (and hard to see), and leave. They now have him on salary again, going out and trying to recreate those late night unmapped trips from 40 years ago...