the government says the project will instead finish in the NSW town of Parkes, pledging to redirect money to improve existing freight networks.
Government halts northern Inland Rail over $45b blowout
Factors driving the blowout include inflation, underestimated risks, land acquisition, and design changes, with only 27% of the corridor completed after more than a decade.
2023 Why Australia's infrastructure projects cost more than they should. –
Risk Offloading: Project cost is often inflated in Australia by a misguided focus on unloading risk in the early stages of a project’s development. This is often driven by the type of contract that is presented to the industry by lawyers, with the objective of minimising up-front costs and putting most of the risks on the contractors. This practice is not generally followed in other countries, which look at ‘whole of Life’ costs and benefits, resulting in a more cooperative and cheaper outcome […]
The impact of the industrial relations (IR) environment on the cost, productivity and performance of the construction industry has long been perceived as important. Labour costs, which are generally 45% of the cost of construction, have been rising as much as 5% per annum[23] over the past 15 years, despite (until very recently) low inflation and low general wage rises.
Source: PLUTO_HAS_COME_BACK