Ex-post evaluation of major infrastructure projects

Ex ante assessment of a project by means of cost-benefit analysis is quite common in transport. On the other hand, ex post evaluations are only done very infrequently, even though such analyses can be very useful. Ex post evaluation can be used to check whether projects really delivered the benefits expected from them at the time, and to learn which projects do better and which do worse than expected, and why. This paper reviews the literature for evaluating projects that have been completed (ex post evaluation). It also presents the methodology that was selected for the ex post evaluation of ten major transport infrastructure projects supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) between 2000 and 2013. A conceptual framework on the impacts of a transport project on society has been developed and worked out in terms of an ex post assessment methodology. The conceptual framework includes a typology of effects for investment projects in the transport sector and the timeframe of effects. Ten case studies (major transport projects) have been carried out using this framework, and the outcomes for these case studies are reported.