The new 4-lane Pattullo Bridge opened this morning which got me thinking. The old 4-lane bridge just off to its left is still standing and, apart from lanes so narrow that the speed limit is 30 km/h across the deck, it is still structurally sound. Yes, another 4-lane bridge was built to replace a 4-lane bridge but that WTF is for another posting. On hearing the news that the bill to taxpayers is $1.636B I thought, how much was the original bridge? 4M 1938 dollars which is about $78M today. You can guess my reaction.
I asked CoPilot a question and it agreed with my 60% estimate and replied, “A realistic range is 35–65% of total costs.” 60% of what you ask? I asked CoPilot “I feel that greed, corruption, no transparency must contribute at least 60% to the modern costs. What percentage would you calculate?”
These are it reasons and their associated ratio of total cost to why Canada’s megaprojects cost 4–15× more than peer nations,
| Factor | Est. contribution |
| Procurement inefficiency | 20–30% |
| Lack of accountability | 10–20% |
| Consultant/middleman overhead | 15–25% |
| Rent seeking / greed | 10–20% |
| Total | 35–65% |
Here are some more examples of historical vs. similar modern megaprojects in cost per kilometer (historic projects in 2024 dollars)
- Pattullo Bridge (1937) $3M vs. New Pattullo Bridge $1.26B
- CNR (1915) $33k vs. Ontario Line $1.74B
- Massey Tunnel (1959) $27M vs. Massey Replacement $4.2B
- Port Mann Bridge (1964) $12.5M vs. New Port Mann (2012) $1.65B
- Coquihalla Highway (1986) $4.1M vs. Hwy 1 Fraser Valley (2020s) $238M
What university courses teach us how to put an end to this lunacy? Something to think about, or act upon.
And the release of today’s parliamentary budget told me that this governmental lunacy is ramping up.
HKKS Education 