10 CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS THAT JUST WOULDN'T END

 

10 Construction Projects That Just Wouldn't End
By Laura Kiniry, Popular Mechanics, 10 October 2013.

Construction projects worldwide are notorious for their endless delays and under-budgeting. Whether they've been infinitely abandoned or are seemingly ongoing, here are 10 infamous projects that, at one time or another, bit off more than they could chew.

1. The Big Dig - Boston, USA

Boston's Central Artery/Tunnel Project, better known as the Big Dig, is one of the U.S.'s most notorious construction projects: a 3.5-mile tunnel to reroute the city's interstate that incurred design flaws, scheduling overruns, and unexpected barriers such as buried houses and the remains of once-sunken ships. Construction crews also had to work around existing subway tunnels without disrupting rail service. By the time of the CA/T's completion in December 2007 (surpassing its initial completion date by nine years), it had become America's most expensive highway project, costing US$14.6 billion-US$22 billion including interest. The project included the excavation of 16 million cubic yards of dirt, and used 3.8 million cubic yards of concrete. It also took 16 years.

2. San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - California, USA

It took a magnitude 6.9 earthquake and a partial collapse of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge's eastern span to convince Bay Area officials they needed something that could withstand a considerable quake. The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake set into motion the construction of a new self-anchored suspension bridge, one that would eventually surpass its initial US$1.1 billion budget by more than US$5 million and take five years longer to build than planned. After work on the 2047-foot span began in 2002, welding issues, political battles over its design, and the failure of dozens of bolts connecting portions of the bridge deck to concrete columns plagued its construction. Finally, the Bay Bridge's new eastern span opened for traffic on Sept. 3, 2013; it is designed to withstand major earthquakes for the next 1500 years.

3. Sagrada Família - Barcelona, Spain

Barcelona's Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família, or Sagrada Família, is easily one of the world's most drawn-out modern construction projects. Construction of the still uncompleted gothic and art nouveau–style church commenced in 1882 with Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi taking over its design in 1883. When he passed away in 1926, less than a quarter of the project was complete (Gaudi once said this was partially because of his client "not being in much of a hurry").

Although construction stopped briefly during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), during which time parts of the basilica were destroyed, this Roman Catholic church is now more than 50 percent completed. The structure is expected to be finished around 2026. If that ever happens, it will have 18 spires, including a 520-foot spiral over the basilica's dome, which will make it the world's tallest church.

4. Second Avenue Subway - New York, USA

Image: MTA

New York City's Second Avenue Subway has been a bane in Gotham's side since 1929, when the idea for a rapid-transit line beneath Second Avenue first came to fruition. Often referred to as the line that time forgot, it has incurred a series of starts and stops - mostly due to low funds and construction issues, such as the delayed delivery of a tunnel-boring machine - for nearly a century. If ever completed, the Second Avenue Subway will run 8.5 miles from 125th Street in Harlem south to Hanover Square in New York's Financial District. Today, construction is proceeding, but only a two-mile stretch and three subway stations are complete and scheduled to open in December 2016. Funding for the remainder of the more than US$17 billion project is yet to be approved.

5. The Chunnel - United Kingdom/France

The 31.4-mile, mostly undersea Channel Tunnel connecting the U.K. and France opened in 1994 after a relatively short period of construction: only six years. But it took much longer to get the project rolling - ideas for a cross-Channel fixed link were first recorded in 1802.

Despite the ease of construction, the Chunnel cost a total of US$7.48 billion upon completion - a whopping 80 percent over its estimated budget - and, since opening, it has been plagued with different problems. There have been several fires leading to its temporary shutdown, and a number of train failures have led to Eurostar passengers being stuck underground for hours. In terms of mechanical advancements, however, the Chunnel is recognized as the first mainline rail tunnel to have special cooling equipment, which includes chilled water circulating through pipes from either side of the underground passage.

6. Sydney Opera House - Sydney, Australia

Image: Wikimedia Commons

It's one of the world's most recognizable buildings, but the Sydney Opera House was an absolute headache to build. After selecting Danish architect John Utzon's unique design, the Australian government pushed for an early start to construction, fearing possible public backlash. Unfortunately, Utzon was still working on his final designs - something that led to significant problems later, including having to rebuild the structure's roof-supporting central podium columns.

Bad weather and other unforeseen woes slowed construction almost immediately. Then, in 1966, a clash between Utzon and Australia's new government led to the architect's resignation. He vacated the country with his family and left behind an incomplete shell. A team of new architects eventually completed the opera house and it officially opened in 1973, albeit 10 years after its initial completion date and at a cost of US$102 million - more than 14 times the original budget.

Despite the difficulties, the Sydney Opera House exhibits several impressive engineering feats. It's one of the first structural designs worldwide to use Araldite, a synthetic resign adhesive for bonding metals, in its construction, and was one of the earliest uses of digital structural analysis.

7. Watts Bar Nuclear Power Plant - East Tennessee, USA

Image: bomazi/Wikimedia Commons

Construction on the Tennessee Valley Authority's Watts Bar Nuclear Power Plant began in 1973, and the first of its two nuclear reactors - a Westinghouse pressurized water reactor - began operating in 1996. Reactor 2 was nearly 80 percent complete in 1988, when the TVA decided to halt construction based on a decreased demand for the electricity it was slated to generate. A growing need for energy caused the TVA to resume construction in 2007, giving Reactor 2 an estimated December 2015 operation date. However, safety issues - including the need to relocate some of the reactor's systems above flood lines - may lead to further delays. Costs for the reactor have nearly doubled since the initial estimate of US$2.5 billion, and the TVA has already invested close to US$10 billion in the overall site.

8. American Dream Meadowlands - East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA

American Dream Meadowlands is a stalled retail and entertainment complex - complete with an indoor water park and indoor snow park - in the N.J. Meadowlands' Sports Complex, initially slated to open in 2007. The Mills Corporation proposed the project (then known as the Meadowlands Xanadu) in 2003 and broke ground in 2004 before going bankrupt in 2007. Colonial Capital then acquired the reigns, but constructed stopped in May 2009 after the global financial firm Lehman Brothers Holdings went bankrupt and stopped making payments. In February 2011, a heavy snowstorm damaged the idle structure, causing the buckling of a wall and a partial roof collapse, resulting in the need for additional construction. Adding insult to injury, a lawsuit filed by the neighbouring New York Giants and New York Jets over traffic concerns has led to even more delays. The Triple Five Group has recently taken control of the project and started on construction, despite the pending lawsuit.

9. World Islands - Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Dubai is known for excessive, incredible, but often unrealized design projects, so it's little surprise that The World, an artificial archipelago of more than 300 man-made islands off the emirate's Persian Gulf coast, is still awaiting its inhabitants. Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed initially conceived of and unveiled the idea in 2003, estimating an overall cost of US$14 billion. Dredging to construct the islands began almost immediately. By 2008, the archipelago was complete and more than 60 percent of the islands were sold. However, real estate efforts stalled with the coming of the global economic crisis, and the islands were left completely undeveloped (save for a show house and the Royal Island Beach Club, which opened on Lebanon Island in 2012). There's even been speculation that the islands are sinking back into the sea.

10. Esperanza Site - Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA

For more than two decades, the corner of Asbury Park's Fourth and Ocean avenues has served as a constant reminder of the city's seemingly endless financial hardships. First, it housed the steel skeleton of a never-completed 224-unit apartment high-rise - a massive eyesore that stood rusting beside the boardwalk for 17 years. Hoboken-based Metro Homes took over the land in 2006 and destroyed the structure, beginning work from the ground up on Esperanza. This luxury condo development was slated to breath new life into the city - that is, before the real estate bubble burst in 2007. Metro Homes halted all construction. Since then, the lot has been home to nothing but a concrete foundation and some large rebar beams. There's a Facebook page calling for its demolition.

[Source: Popular Mechanics. Edited.]