Persisting Cost Overruns in Public Infrastructure Projects: Lessons From the Belgian Case

Abstract

Public authorities are expected to provide a salient infrastructure network, with only limited financial resources. However, many of these infrastructure projects go over budget and, therefore, research about these cost overruns is necessary to better understand the dynamics at work and provide solutions. We conclude that in Belgium, and broader, solutions need to be found for relational issues internal and external to the project core. Before a lot of attention was given to technical and legal project aspects, while our insights show that we should focus more on the relational aspects.