Why is it so hard to plan Infrastructure Investment programs?

Here’s a selection of quotes from a recent article about infrastructure:

“tremendous growth, concentrated in the largest metropolitan areas, will place new demands on already overtaxed infrastructure”

“Rooftop solar panels have rattled electric utilities, which are scrambling to find ways to incorporate and store the energy they produce while keeping the grid operating”

“High-profile natural disasters draw attention to problems with infrastructure. Washed-out roads and shorted electrical circuitry not only highlight the economy’s reliance on these networks, but also reveal their poor condition”

“Infrastructure is selected, built, maintained, operates and paid for in a diverse and fragmentary fashion”

These quotes indicate just a few of the disruptive forces that Authorities are faced with when looking to plan and manage infrastructure investment programs.

The new normal arising from the current “once in a century” circumstances, will create even greater challenges for decision makers seeking to accelerate economic recovery.

So which Country do you think the article above was written about?

Here’s a hint:

“In many respects, America’s ability to realize its competitive potential depends on making smart infrastructure choices. These must respond to economic, demographic, fiscal, and environmental changes if they are to help people, places and firms thrive and prosper.” (“Why Infrastructure Matters: Rotten Roads, Bum Economy – Robert Puentes, 2015”)

It appears that Australia might not be the only country struggling with these challenges?