Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 16/3/2015 (2014 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When a major project is announced during an election year, you can pretty much bet some aspect of the work will go sideways.

That's what happened to the Plessis Road widening and underpass project, a major Winnipeg roadwork, rail-underpass and pipeline realignment that leapfrogged into existence in the midst of a dual federal and provincial election cycle in 2011.

The project had an initial $77-million budget and a 2014 completion date. This initially seemed unlikely, due to the complexity of negotiating with both pipeline and railway companies. But the city, province and Ottawa forged ahead, thanks to commitments made to voters in 2011.

Last week, city council was told the project is behind schedule and over budget to the tune of $7 million -- and Ottawa may not pick up its $25 million of the now-$84-million price tag because the improbable original deadline has not been met.

The Plessis project is now the latest in a long line of major Winnipeg construction jobs that didn't get done on time or for the originally projected price. This is not because construction companies and public entities are incompetent.

There are all kinds of reasons a major project does not get completed on time and budget. Incomplete or faulty designs can lead to expensive change orders. The wrong construction model can be applied to a project; sometimes it's safer to cost out everything in advance rather than go to work and price things out on the fly.

And then there are projects doomed by unrealistic political expectations, which all but guarantee expensive changes along the way.

For comparison's sake, here are a handful of notable Winnipeg capital projects over the past few years:

-- with files from Mary Agnes Welch

bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca