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''Megaprojects and Risk: An Anatomy of Ambition'' is a 2003 book by
Bent Flyvbjerg Bent Flyvbjerg is a Danish economic geographer. He was the First BT Professor and Inaugural Chair of Major Programme Management at Oxford University's Saïd Business School (retiring from the post in 2021) and is the Villum Kann Rasmussen Profes ...
, Nils Bruzelius, and Werner Rothengatter, published by
Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pr ...
. According to chief economist and director of transportation policy at Infrastructure Management Group, Inc., Porter K. Wheeler, "this book makes an important contribution to understanding the infrastructure development process worldwide, with focus on
megaprojects A megaproject is an extremely large-scale investment project. According to the ''Oxford Handbook of Megaproject Management'', "Megaprojects are large-scale, complex ventures that typically cost $1 billion or more, take many years to develop a ...
." The ''
New Scientist ''New Scientist'' is a magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organisation publish ...
'' wrote upon publication, "Love them or loathe them, megaprojects capture the imagination. hisdamning analysis concentrates on a series of financial nightmares that should bring even the most casual reader out in a sweat."


Overview

"
Megaproject A megaproject is an extremely large-scale investment project. According to the ''Oxford Handbook of Megaproject Management'', "Megaprojects are large-scale, complex ventures that typically cost $1 billion or more, take many years to develop and ...
s" is the term applied to multibillion-dollar infrastructure developments such as massive dams and bridges, and to elaborate railways and highways. The book identifies a "megaprojects paradox," pointing out that more of these projects are being implemented, but such projects typically perform very poorly, often with substantial cost overruns and market shortfalls. Chapters two to four examine the
Channel Tunnel The Channel Tunnel (french: Tunnel sous la Manche), also known as the Chunnel, is a railway tunnel that connects Folkestone (Kent, England, UK) with Coquelles ( Hauts-de-France, France) beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover ...
, which opened in 1994 at a cost of £4.7 billion following cost-overruns of 80 percent which caused several companies to nearly go bankrupt.
Denver International Airport Denver International Airport , locally known as DIA, is an international airport in the Western United States, primarily serving metropolitan Denver, Colorado, as well as the greater Front Range Urban Corridor. At , it is the largest airport i ...
, which cost $5 billion, opened in 1995 following a 200 percent cost overrun, and passenger traffic in 1995 was only half that expected. There were also problems with Hong Kong's
Chek Lap Kok Airport Hong Kong International Airport is Hong Kong's main airport, built on reclaimed land on the island of Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong. The airport is also referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport or ''Chek Lap Kok Airport'', to distinguish ...
, opened in 1998, which had low revenues and negatively affected Hong Kong's economy, initially. According to the authors, the reason for such poor performances is that many of the participants in the process have incentives to underestimate costs, overestimate revenues, undervalue environmental impact, and overvalue economic development effects. The authors argue that central problems are lack of accountability and inappropriate risk sharing, which can be improved by reforming the institutional arrangements of decision making and by instituting accountability at the project development and evaluation stages.


Reception

''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...
'' of London gave ''Megaprojects and Risk'' a cover story and wrote, "Life is too short to read every tome penned by Scandinavian and German social scientists. But ''Megaprojects and Risk'', written by Bent Flyvbjerg, Nils Bruzelius and Werner Rothengatter, is a cracker. In lurid and startling detail it examines dozens of vast construction schemes around the world." The ''
International Journal of Urban and Regional Research International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...
'' wrote, "a timely intervention ... Flyvbjerg ''et al''. have presented us with something close to a manifesto that should really be in the hands of every planning minister, regional and city planner, journalist and activist involved in mega-project development ... by the end I was wishing that more social scientists had such a lightness of touch and precise use of illustration. ... highly insightful." The ''
Geographical Journal ''The Geographical Journal'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal of the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers). It publishes papers covering research on all aspects of geography. It also publishes shorter C ...
'' wrote, "this is the first ookof its kind. It is concise and clear ... The subject matter is extremely interesting, timely and relevant. It sits within the tradition of ‘Victims of Groupthink’ and ‘Great Planning Disasters’ and attempts to find practical solutions. It is also highly suggestive of wider application beyond its immediate concerns." The '' Financial Express'' of India found the book, "a perfect complement to the richly textured arguments closer to home of Arundhati Roy in her damning indictment of the Narmada Dam and the Sardar Sarovar Project in ''The Greater Common Good'' ... The authors f ''Megaprojects and Risk''provide a peep-show into social psychology itha wealth of empirical evidence ... Do read this book."


Readership

''Megaprojects and Risk: An Anatomy of Ambition'' is widely read and cited. It has more than 3,500 cites o
Google Scholar
making it the most cited book on megaproject planning and management.Li, Yongkui, Yujie Lu, John E. Taylor, and Yilong Han, 2018, "Bibliographic and Comparative Analyses to Explore Emerging Classic Texts in Megaproject Management," ''International Journal of Project Management'', vol. 36, no. 2, February, pp. 241-396.


See also

*
List of cancelled nuclear plants in the United States This is a list of canceled nuclear reactors in the United States. History The late 1960s and early 1970s saw a rapid growth in the development of nuclear power in the United States. By 1976, however, many nuclear plant proposals were no longer v ...
*''
When Technology Fails ''When Technology Fails'', edited by Neil Schlager, is a collection of 103 case studies about significant technological disasters, accidents, and failures of the 20th century. It was published in 1994 by Gale Research, Inc. It was one of the top ...
'' *'' Normal Accidents: Living with High-Risk Technologies'' *
Northeast blackout of 2003 The Northeast blackout of 2003 was a widespread power outage throughout parts of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, and most parts of the Canadian province of Ontario on Thursday, August 14, 2003, beginning just after 4:10 p.m. ...
*'' Brittle Power: Energy Strategy for National Security'' *''
Small Is Beautiful ''Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered'' is a collection of essays published in 1973 by German-born British economist E. F. Schumacher. The title "Small Is Beautiful" came from a principle espoused by Schumach ...
'' *'' Small Is Profitable''


References


External links

* {{youtube, H0WunaC_jsk, Video by Michael Hobbes 2003 non-fiction books 2003 in the environment Oil megaprojects Risk management Books about economic policy Infrastructure