Europe's 30 most important transport projects will cost more and take longer to complete than first expected, according to an independent study. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) blames the estimated additional £32bn of costs on poor project management, changes in specifications, planning problems and lawsuits.
Many of the schemes it examined in its study, prepared for the European Parliament, are rail infrastructure schemes on the Continent. But the study did include road improvements from
Felixstowe to Holyhead and Stranraer, part of the UK/Ireland/Benelux road project, as well as the West Coast Main Line. The 30 schemes were identified in 2004 by the European Union as priority projects for unifying the 27 member states and include, for example, a motorway from Gdansk to Vienna.
The countries with most of the projects bear the bulk of the costs, with Italy paying the most at €62.7bn (£50.5bn), Spain a similar amount, France €41.1bn (£33.1bn) and Germany €31.8bn (£25.6bn). The UK's costs are €26.7bn (£21.5bn) under the PwC estimates. Overall the cost of the schemes is 11.6% higher than the original estimate in 2004, rising from €340bn (£273.6bn) to €379bn (£305bn).
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