# Cost overruns.... **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 21, 2020, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234 "2020-05-21T12:08:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/1 "2020-05-21T12:08:12Z")
What projects have you seen with the biggest cost overruns (i.e. original projected cost vs the actual final cost)? I can think of a couple: 1. Sydney Opera House: projected cost: $7 million; actual cost: $102 million. 2. Montreal Olympic Stadium: projected cost: $71 million; actual cost: $1.4 billion. 3. Denver Airport: projected cost: $2.8 billion; actual cost: $4.8 billion. (these numbers come from various sources; your mileage may vary). ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/2 "2020-05-21T12:14:23Z")
Boston Big Dig: projected cost: $2.8 billion; actual cost: $8.08 billion (also 9 years behind schedule) ---
**Author:** ![Hermitian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hermitian/32/470_2.png) [@Hermitian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hermitian)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/3 "2020-05-21T12:39:16Z")
**The James Webb Space Telescope** : From Wikipedia: “The telescope was originally estimated to cost $1.6 billion, but the cost estimate grew throughout the early development and had reached about $5 billion by the time the mission was formally confirmed for construction start in 2008. By October 2019, the estimated cost of the project had reached $10 billion for launch in 2021.” ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/4 "2020-05-21T12:46:13Z")
Face mask sanitizers that will allow them to be used twenty times: "…at $60 million for 60 machines on April 3, the price was right. But over just a few days, the potential cost to taxpayers exploded to $413 million, according to notes of a coronavirus task force meeting obtained by NBC News. By May 1, the Pentagon pegged the ceiling at $600 million in a justification for awarding the deal without an open bidding process or an actual contract. " > **[Trump administration paid huge premium for ineffective mask-cleaning machines](https://news.yahoo.com/white-house-paid-huge-premium-154700476.html)** > > The president pressured the FDA to waive rules for mask-cleaning machines that ballooned to 10 times the original cost. But the process may damage the masks. “Even worse, scientists and nurses say the recycled masks treated by these machines begin to degrade after two or three treatments, not 20, and the company says its own recent field testing has only confirmed the integrity of the masks for four cycles of use and decontamination.” ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/5 "2020-05-21T16:24:22Z")
$223 Million cost overrun for the tunnel to replace 99 through Seattle: > **[State Route 99 tunnel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Route_99_Tunnel)** > > The State Route 99 tunnel, also known as the Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement tunnel, is a bored highway tunnel in the city of Seattle, Washington, United States. The 2-mile (3.2 km), double-decker tunnel carries a section of State Route 99 (SR 99) under Downtown Seattle from SoDo in the south to South Lake Union in the north. > Since the 2001 Nisqually earthquake, the replacement of the Alaskan Way Viaduct had been the source of much political controversy demonstrating the Seattle process. Opt... Bad Bertha! Another $4.5 Billion had to be added to the Hanford vitrification plant cost (over $16B total cost): > **[Hanford vit plant cost estimate jumps $4.5 billion](https://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/hanford/article121354623.html)** > > The cost of the Hanford nuclear reservation’s Waste Treatment Plant, or vitrification plant, has increased $4.5 billion from the last estimate of $12.3 billion to allow some radioactive waste to be treated as soon as possible. It would allow the... Was supposed to open in 2018 and now it’s pushed back to 2023. ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/6 "2020-05-21T16:52:39Z")
New York City’s Second Avenue Subway: According to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Avenue_Subway#Initial_attempts): “On September 15, 1929, the Board of Transportation of the City of New York (BOT) tentatively approved the expansion, which included a Second Avenue Line with a projected construction cost of $98.9 million.” The beginning of that article says that when the project is finally complete, some time perhaps ten years from now, it will have “cost more than $17 billion.” - almost 172 times the original estimate. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/7 "2020-05-21T17:23:03Z")
Shell (Oil Company) built the Pearl GTL (converting natural gas to oil) in Qatar. From an initial cost estimate of $5Billion , it went up to about $25 Billion. “ In 2003, the project cost was estimated to be US$5 billion. However, after facing huge cost escalation, it was reported to be $18 billion in 2007,[1] and, according to Qatar Petroleum sources, final project cost is expected to reach as high as $24 billion.[9] Because Shell’s contract provided them with the input gas for free, the project was calculated to be viable once the price of oil exceeded $40 per barrel.” > **[Pearl GTL](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_GTL)** > > The Pearl GTL is a gas to liquids (GTL) plant based in Ras Laffan, Qatar. It converts natural gas into liquid petroleum products. It is the largest GTL plant in the world. The first commercial shipment from the Pearl GTL was made on 13 June 2011. Pearl GTL received the 2021 "Asset of the Year" award by Shell. > Upon achieving its full capacity within 2012, the Pearl GTL will convert 1.6 billion cubic feet per day (45×10^6 m3/d) of natural gas into 140 thousand barrels per day (22×10^3 m3/d) of p... ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/8 "2020-05-21T17:24:30Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > New York City’s Second Avenue Subway: > > According to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Avenue_Subway#Initial_attempts): “On September 15, 1929, the Board of Transportation of the City of New York (BOT) tentatively approved the expansion, which included a Second Avenue Line with a projected construction cost of $98.9 million.” > > The beginning of that article says that when the project is finally complete, some time perhaps ten years from now, it will have “cost more than $17 billion.” - almost 172 times the original estimate. $98.9M is $1.4B in 2020 dollars. That cost overrun calculation is more complicated given the extreme time. Also, has the scope changed? Not quite the same if the project doubles in size vs you get the original scope for twice the price. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/9 "2020-05-21T17:35:35Z")
Not as high in percentage terms as some of the others here, but in terms of sheer dollars the California high speed rail link between Los Angeles and San Francisco is a contender. Projected costs under the original estimate in 2008 were $33.6 billion, and when voters approved the plan later that year it was at $40 billion. The plan in 2016 estimated costs at $64 billion, and that’s now up over $80 billion, with the opening of the full line pushed back to 2033. Some estimates now suggest that, if it’s ever actually finished, it will cost close to $100 billion. ---
**Author:** ![yearofglad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/b782af/32.png) [@yearofglad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yearofglad)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2020, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/10 "2020-05-21T19:07:13Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > $223 Million cost overrun for the tunnel to replace 99 through Seattle: > > [State Route 99 tunnel - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Route_99_Tunnel) While still a cost overrun, I suppose, [the Washington Department of Transportation successfully sued the contractor](https://komonews.com/news/local/jury-awards-wsdot-572-million-in-seattle-tunnel-lawsuit) in charge of Big Bertha, claiming that the contractor was responsible for the breakdown, and was awarded $57.2 million. So, still more than a $150M cost overrun out of the state’s coffers. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/11 "2020-05-22T12:28:35Z")
“Boss” Tweed’s courthouse would need to be considered a candidate. > **[Tweed Courthouse](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tweed_Courthouse)** > > The Tweed Courthouse (also known as the Old New York County Courthouse) is a historic courthouse building at 52 Chambers Street in the Civic Center of Manhattan in New York City. It was built in the Italianate style with Romanesque Revival interiors. William M. "Boss" Tweed – the corrupt leader of Tammany Hall, a political machine that controlled the New York state and city governments when the courthouse was built – oversaw the building's erection. The Tweed Courthouse served as a judicial bui... ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/12 "2020-05-22T21:07:14Z")
Project Apollo initial cost projections were $7-12 billion for the whole shebang; it ended up costing over $25 billion (and still worth every penny, dammit!): [Apollo program - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_program#Costs) Costs for the B-2 Spirit bomber program rose so dramatically that each plane ended up costing over $1 billion. You could literally have made each plane out of solid gold and it would still have been cheaper (although, of course, not quite as flightworthy): [Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_B-2_Spirit#Program_costs_and_procurement) The Superconducting Super Collider was cancelled after about $2 billion had already been spent but when cost projections rose from $4 billion to over $12 billion. It would surely have cost a good bit more had it actually been completed: [Superconducting Super Collider - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superconducting_Super_Collider) Space Shuttle costs ended up being much higher than initially projected: “When all design and maintenance costs are taken into account, the final cost of the Space Shuttle program, averaged over all missions and adjusted for inflation, was estimated to come out to $1.5 billion per launch, or $60,000/kg (approximately $27,000 per pound) to LEO. This should be contrasted with the originally envisioned costs of $118 per pound of payload in 1972 dollars (approximately $635 per pound adjusting for inflation to 2011).” From here: [Criticism of the Space Shuttle program - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_the_Space_Shuttle_program) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/13 "2020-05-22T21:21:24Z")
The NYS Capitol Buiding took over 30 years to complete and a final cost of $25 million in 1899 ($768 million today). I can’t see the original cost, but on a percentage basis, it has to be up there. There were three architects and two different architectural styles, and people would run for governor promising to finish it. The “million dollar staircase” is so named because it supposedly cost a million dollars, which was real money at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/14 "2020-05-22T21:44:36Z")
I don’t have the figures handy, but Bangkok’s Skytrain (aboveground rapid transit) and later its subway both were decried for cost overruns. As has Honolulu’s aboveground mass-transit project, yet to be finished. I guess this is common in projects like these. ---
**Author:** ![Noelq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noelq/32/16438_2.png) [@Noelq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noelq)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/15 "2020-05-22T22:13:45Z")
California High Speed Rail. Bond passed for 9 billion to complete. Currently, its projected to cost $68.8 billion. And growing. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/16 "2020-05-22T23:02:30Z")
It’s sometimes been said that the Panama Canal was the last US government project that was brought in ahead of schedule and under budget.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/17 "2020-05-22T23:44:35Z")
Surely the new Berlin airport would be a contender? ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2020, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/18 "2020-05-22T23:46:24Z")
Every trip to Costco I’ve ever made. Sent from my SM-G955U1 using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2020, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/19 "2020-05-23T00:54:06Z")
> [@Mark\_Finn](#): > > 1. Denver Airport: projected cost: $2.8 billion; actual cost: $4.8 billion. THAT piece of shit cost 4.8 **BILLION**? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2020, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234/20 "2020-05-23T01:19:41Z")
Some of the grand Gothic projects of the medieval period might have really stretched their original budget. [York Minster Cathedral](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Minster) Construction began in 1220 and ended in 1472, 252 years to complete The cornerstone for [Cologne Cathedral](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne_Cathedral) was laid in 1248, and construction pace progressively slowed until 1473 when it stopped into the 1840s and finished in 1880 — 632 years. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cost-overruns/854234.md?page=2)