tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6470543006314152962.post2991919566049681025..comments2024-03-11T16:49:27.614+00:00Comments on The Happy Pontist: River Wear Crossing tenders returnedThe Happy Pontisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15252272118786667592noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6470543006314152962.post-43488996600627880232013-06-04T19:14:14.966+01:002013-06-04T19:14:14.966+01:00There's no legal compulsion to make the result...There's no legal compulsion to make the results public immediately. In particular, the authority may wish to have time to check they are compliant with the tender requirements, and to issue any queries or clarifications, before anything is made public.The Happy Pontisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15252272118786667592noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6470543006314152962.post-16045874260032813652013-06-04T18:02:12.952+01:002013-06-04T18:02:12.952+01:00Just curious about how the tender process works in...Just curious about how the tender process works in the UK. Here in the colonies, for public agency projects, the tenders (we call them bids over here) would typically be opened in a public setting and the results announced immediately. It would be virtually unprecedented for tenders to be received and kept "secret" for days or weeks. Is this the process in the UK? Is anyone concerned that the results have not been announced? Does it mean anything?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6470543006314152962.post-12154369998985147182013-05-24T13:25:41.839+01:002013-05-24T13:25:41.839+01:00If we consider the bridge as a massive investment ...If we consider the bridge as a massive investment into infrastructure, - here I mean investment in its most simple form, e.g. as buying stocks or investing into funds - it is no surprise that the cost-benefit-calculations are somewhat elusive, as stated by Brian Potter.<br />When you invest into some financial funds, you usually make your decision based on the performance of the field of the investment (recent performance of a field, e.g. agriculture, mining, biotechnology, whatever) to get a basic idea what you MIGHT expect from your future investment. If you have already deciced for a specific fund, you can look at its past performance, but this still doesn't say anything about what will happen to your invested money. Of course, the managers of a startup fund would also point out other similar and successful examples.<br />From the investment point of view, a "landmark" bridge is a startup fund for long term, with medium-to-high risk and rather uncertain yield expectations, where the one cannot "back out" on the short term.Imre Laufernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6470543006314152962.post-80414676493322279842013-05-23T23:30:41.725+01:002013-05-23T23:30:41.725+01:00I think this is the economic case document here, s...I think this is the economic case document here, section 4 is most relevant, and you'll note that most of the benefits cited for other landmark bridges are anecdotal rather than measured: http://www.newsunderlandbridge.com/page-downloads/6-4.pdfThe Happy Pontisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15252272118786667592noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6470543006314152962.post-56163925236016984282013-05-23T23:19:14.700+01:002013-05-23T23:19:14.700+01:00Unfortunately, the economic impact assessment does...Unfortunately, the economic impact assessment doesn't seem to be available at the website. But based on the summary, it seems like there's a good chance of a pretty substantial selection bias.<br /><br />From their summary:<br /><br /><i> "Our analysis examined case studies of major place-making investments that have stimulated new private investment and accelerated urban regeneration outcomes"</i><br /><br />In short, it appears they looked at only the successful projects, and cheerfully ignored all the expensive attempts at "place-making investments" which failed to pay off, of which I'd imagine there are many. After all, it's not as if Salginatobel is a bustling metropolis.Brian Potter, PEhttp://simplesupports.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com