Congress has authorized the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to launch a study into why infrastructure projects in New York City – as well as in the U.S. – cost much more than similar projects elsewhere in the world, The New York Times has reported.
The GAO will look at the country’s infrastructure costs in the $1.3 trillion spending bill lawmakers passed earlier this month. As part of its investigation, the agency will study cost drivers like contracting policies, station design and regulatory barriers in other countries and compare them with those in the U.S.
According to the report, the GAO will focus on the high price of construction in New York City, where some rail projects cost as much as $3.5 billion per track mile versus $1 billion in San Francisco and, on average, less than $500 million in the rest of the world.
The GAO is expected to issue its report at the end of the year.
