A Study on Causes of Delay in Road Construction Projects across 25 Developing Countries

Abstract

Delays in road construction projects due to various reasons are a major problem facing construction professionals. The incapability of finishing projects punctually and within a given budget is a persistent issue worldwide. This study aims to determine the ten principal causes of delay in road construction projects in 25 developing countries across the globe. The study involves two steps. First, the authors compiled information regarding the most frequent delays in a road construction project. Second, they analyzed the intensity of each cause of delay in these projects. Being more accurate in the methodology, given the nature of the information, the researchers used a quasi-meta-analysis for processing the data. Half (50%) of the countries have similar causes of delay, and likewise, 50% of the countries identified the top ten primary causes of delay in road construction projects based on the intensity results. This study uses the results of the intensity. According to the results of the homologation, the lack of experience of the construction manager, inadequate planning/scheduling, and influence on people’s land alongside the road construction project (expropriation for the construction of the project) have more significant impacts than frequent changes in the design (which was listed as the most frequent cause of delay).

Design Delays in Building Projects in India: Effects and Remedies

“…Care was taken to incorporate most of the key factors under the consultant-and design-linked aspects in the questionnaire, as found in the literature reviewed (Table 1) (Aibinu and Odeyinka, 2006;Al-Kharashi and Skitmore, 2009;Bagrecha and Bais, 2017;Doloi, et al, 2012;KPMG and PMI, 2012;Love, et al, 2011;Mäki, 2015;Mali and Warudkar, 2016;Pandya and Malek, 2018;Rivera, Baguec, and Yeom, 2020;Singh, 2010). The questionnaires were reviewed and finalised after initial discussions with some of the stakeholders (A sample questionnaire has been included in Appendix-1).…”

“…However, delays in building construction projects are attributed to the three traditional project actors, being the clients, the contractors, and the consultants engaged in planning and design activities (Aiyetan and Das, 2016;Das, 2015;Han, Love and Pena-Mora, 2013;Love, et al, 2011). In India, the factors related to these three stakeholders are also predominant causes of delay in the construction industry (Das, 2015;Das, 2018;Bagrecha and Bais, 2017;Deep, et al, 2018;Doloi, et al, 2012;Mali and Warudkar, 2016;Pandya and Malek, 2018;Rivera, Baguec and Yeom, 2020;Singh, Bala and Dixit, 2018).…”

“…However, the factors with relatively low DI values and the exogenous factors, such as investment, the contractor-and client-specific factors, environment, procurement, equipment and labour, were kept out of the scope of the modelling. Doloi, et al, 2012;KPMG and PMI, 2012;Love, et al, 2011;Mäki, 2015;Mali and Warudkar, 2016;Pandya and Malek, 2018;Rivera, Baguec, and Yeom, 2020;Singh, 2010)…”

“…In the Indian context, it has been argued that design-related challenges contribute significantly to construction delay (Bagrecha and Bais, 2017;Doloi, et al, 2012;Das, 2015;Mali and Warudkar, 2016;Pandya and Malek, 2018;Rivera, Baguec and Yeom, 2020). Therefore, using the study context of building projects in India, the objectives of this investigation were: (1) to identify the influential consultant-and design-linked factors that cause delay; (2) to map causal feedback relations among the most influential consultant-and design-linked factors; and (3) to examine the occurrence of delay in building projects under different scenarios, based on which strategic interventions can be undertaken.…”

Delays in the Road Construction Projects from Risk Management Perspective

“…The delay issue exists in most road construction projects [1]. The Oxford English Dictionary defines delay as "a period of time when someone or something has to wait because of a problem that makes something slow or late" [2].…”