B.C. government lacked capacity to properly oversee Port Mann project, review finds
Consultant's report follows CBC investigation that revealed concerns about management of megaproject
If the B.C. government hopes to manage another megaproject like the $3.4-billion Port Mann Bridge replacement, it needs to make significant investments in the people and processes needed to properly oversee the work, according to an independent review.
The report from consultants at Perrin, Thorau and Associates found several areas where the previous B.C. Liberal government lacked the necessary resources to directly manage the bridge's design and construction.
It recommends the government beef up its expertise in several areas, including risk management, records management, and the ability to estimate the cost and draw up a schedule for major transportation projects.
The review comes after a CBC investigation revealed concerns about "weak oversight" from six sources at two auditing firms.
They suggested the province overpaid millions of dollars for the bridge because of lax verification of invoicing and ineffective monitoring of the project's timing and completion.
The independent review, commissioned by B.C.'s Ministry of Finance, found instances where the province simply wasn't able to independently estimate costs and schedules for construction, relying instead on contracted consultants.
At the same time, the government wasn't able to analyze proposals from the contractor, Kiewit Flatiron, or test new additions to the project to make sure they were priced competitively.
Important paperwork seems to have gone missing along the way, too.
"We found that the province often had difficulties locating documents related to the PMH1 [Port Mann Bridge/Highway 1] project and were surprised by the extent to which the province was unable to recover key documents," the report says.
Improvements underway
Beyond concerns about oversight of major projects, the consultants make several other recommendations, including that the province publish a policy for contingency funding of cost increases and include schedule reporting requirements in contracts.
In a written statement, the bodies responsible for managing the Port Mann project said they were pleased with the review, and they accept the recommendations about improving project management.
They said those recommendations have already been implemented or are underway.
"It is timely and constructive to consider how these recommendations will be addressed and implemented on current and upcoming projects such as the Pattullo Bridge Replacement Project," the statement says.
The statement is signed by B.C.'s assistant deputy minister for infrastructure and major projects, the CEO of the Transportation Investment Corporation and the CEO of Partnerships B.C.
With files from Manjula Dufresne
Summary Report - Port Mann Bridge (PDF KB)
Summary Report - Port Mann Bridge (Text KB)CBC is not responsible for 3rd party content