PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE DEFINITION

Infrastructure:

 Refers to the long-lived physical structures, facilities and supporting operating systems
that provide essential services to consumers and facilitate the flow of goods, information
and factors of production between buyers and sellers.
 Capital projects that are pervasive inputs into production: that is, projects that provide
services used at any one time by a large number of different firms and individuals to
facilitate production.
 Fundamental facilities and systems serving a country, city, or other area, including the
services and facilities necessary for its economy to function.
Public Infrastructure:

 An investment where the government has the primary role in, and responsibility for,
deciding on whether and how the infrastructure is provided in the interests of the broader
community and on the source of the revenue streams to pay for the infrastructure over its
life.
 Infrastructure that is owned by the public (represented by the government) or is for public
use. It is generally distinguishable from private or generic infrastructure in terms of policy,
financing, purpose.
 Public infrastructure provides the basic foundation for economic activity and its social
benefits far exceed what any individual would be willing to pay for its services.
Roles in Development:

 Economic development depends primarily on locational advantage, whether it is between

cities, states, or countries. Firms seek areas that offer greater opportunities for economic
profit. Public infrastructure can enhance these opportunities either by increasing
productivity or by reducing factor costs; that is, by augmenting the efficiency of private
inputs employed by firms or by providing an attractive environment within which
households are willing to accept lower wages in order to reside.
 Public infrastructures provide services that are part of the consumption bundles of
individuals in an economy.
 Public infrastructures serve as an input to production, therefore augmenting productivity
and output.
 The economy needs reliable infrastructure to connect supply chains and efficiently move
goods and services across borders. Infrastructure connects households across
metropolitan areas to higher quality opportunities for employment, healthcare and
education. Clean energy and public transit can reduce greenhouse gases. This same
economic logic applies to broadband networks, water systems and energy production and
distribution.
Who Provides, Who Benefits:

 PROVIDES:
 Infrastructure capital may be provided privately or publicly. Traditionally, however, much
infrastructure capital has been provided by the public sector.
 Public infrastructure is an investment where the government has the primary role in
  Public infrastructure extends beyond infrastructure that is owned or directly funded by the
public sector. For example, this definition would capture infrastructure assets and services
owned and operated by the private sector, but where the government has created the
overarching policy and regulatory framework, or possibly retains a contingent liability for
the infrastructure assets and continued service provision.
 The traditional economic rationale for government intervention is that socially beneficial
infrastructure assets and/or services would be underprovided by the private sector.
 Potential underprovision arises where services exhibit public good characteristics (notably
non-excludability for infrastructure such as most road networks), network effects and
positive externalities, or where a facility has natural monopoly characteristics such that a
private provider would have the ability and incentive to raise prices and/or restrict output
below socially desirable levels.
 BENEFITS:
 Infrastructure is provided in the interests of the broader community
 Infrastructure capital enhances private sector production.
How it is planned, budgeted, implemented and operated:

 Infrastructure takes a long time and a lot of money to design and build. Projects are
generally built to support a fixed maximum use or population and have a finite lifespan.
This results in a challenge for public and private sector planners to accurately predict
population density and infrastructure usage on a forward-looking basis, to ensure that they
build systems to support populations 10-30+ years in the future.
 Large infrastructure projects are generally public-private partnerships to some extent, as
their duration and capital requirements often require government sponsorship. These
projects also tend to involve public property or public goods such as water, power, and
transportation networks. It would be extremely difficult for companies to build large
infrastructure without government sponsorship.
 The infrastructure and construction industry is constantly innovating from a technology
perspective.
 Testing, systems integration, and program management software is another category of
technology that is very important to infrastructure and construction. Tools such as building
information modeling (BIM) allow more efficient planning, design, and model-based testing
that help builders optimize space and decrease mistakes.
 There are a number of constraints that affect infrastructure and large-structure
construction companies. These constraints are focused on public planners and the
companies that develop projects in partnership with government customers.
 A clear understanding of future population and demographic patterns will result in better
and more efficient use of public resources.
 While government sponsorship is positive and in many cases necessary, it is
accompanied by the challenges implicit in working under government oversight. In some
cases this is limited to the regulatory burden of government cost-accounting and
management systems. Highly visible public projects have famously become political and
even campaign issues as projects are funded via taxes or bond issuances. This can result
in increased oversight and regulatory pressure.
 CATEGORY EXAMPLE

THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE, San Francisco, California

Transport
Infrastructure

Bridges, roads,
bicycle paths,
sidewalks, airports
and rail services.

The four-year project to span the Golden Gate strait and connect
San Francisco to Marin County culminated in what was the world's
longest (4,200 feet) and tallest suspension bridge when this Bay
Area landmark opened in 1937. The Golden Gate would keep those
records until the 1960s.

HOOVER DAM, Nevada/Arizona, United States

Wet Infrastructure

Water supply, water

treatment, water
resource
management, flood
management and
coastal restoration
infrastructure.
Hoover Dam is one of the most iconic dams around the world stretching
between the American states of Nevada and Arizona. It's a concrete
gravity-arch dam that was constructed with the purpose to control flood,
provide irrigation water, produce hydroelectric power, store water, and
for recreation. One of the biggest preparations done for the construction
of Hoover Dam was the diversion of the Colorado River away from the
site.
 MUPPANDAL WIND FARM, India

Energy
Infrastructure

Grids, power
stations, wind
turbines and solar
panels.

The third largest wind farm is situated, it’s in Tamil Nadu, India – The
Muppandal Windfarm. There are about 3000 turbines set up in the farm
which produces 1500 MW of clean energy. The wind farm has helped
to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels and will eventually lead to a
reduction in emission of greenhouse gases.

33 THOMAS STREET, New York

Information
Infrastructure

Basic
communication and
network services.

33 Thomas Street, also known as the ‘Long Lines Building’, is a heavily-

fortified Brutalist skyscraper located in Lower Manhattan, New York. It
was constructed between 1969 and 1974 to serve as a major
telecommunications hub for the New York Telephone Company, a
subsidiary of AT&T. It’s a 550-foot-tall (170 m).
 PALACE OF WESTMINSTER, United Kingdom

Government

Institutions of
government such as
a parliament, courts
and regulatory
bodies that provide
social, economic
and environmental
stability.
Commonly known as the Houses of Parliament after its occupants, the
Palace lies on the north bank of the River Thames in the City of
Westminster, in central London, England. It is the meeting place of the
House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom.

BAUHAUS DESSAU, Dessau, Germany

Institutions

Critical institutions in
areas such as
education, culture,
health, social
services and
finance.

The architectural project was commissioned and funded by the city of

Dessau. The campus features an asymmetric pinwheel plan. The
Bauhaus Dessau's most striking features are its glass curtain walls,
which wrap around corners and provide views of the building's interiors,
and it’s supporting structure.
 CENTRAL PARK, New York, United States

Public Space

Parks, beaches,
gardens, historical
sites, nature
reserves and other
public spaces.

Located at the center of Manhattan in New York City, this famous urban
park was opened in 1857. Central Park is the most visited urban park
in the United States with 35 million visitors each year. It spans over 800
acre with many beautiful features like Belvedere Castle, the Central
Park Reservoir, Bethesda Fountain and many more.

DEER ISLAND SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT, Boston

Waste
Infrastructure

generation,
collection,
management of
trash/garbage,
disposal and
treatment of
wastewater,
characteristics, Deer Island is the second largest sewage treatment plant in the United
disposal, handling of States.[2] The plant is a key part of the program to protect Boston
hazardous waste Harbor from pollution from sewer systems in eastern Massachusetts,
mandated by a 1984 federal court ruling by Judge Paul G. Garrity, in a
case brought under the Clean Water Act.
 APPENDIX
https://www.rba.gov.au/publications/confs/2014/pdf/poole-toohey-harris.pdf
http://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p43541/pdf/article0522.pdf
https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/12990/1/MPRA_paper_12990.pdf
https://graylinegroup.com/infrastructure-construction-industry/
https://simplicable.com/new/public-infrastructure
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/infrastructure.asp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrastructure
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_infrastructure
http://greencleanguide.com/the-five-largest-wastewater-treatment-plants-in-the-world/
https://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/030216/worlds-top-10-telecommunications-
companies.asp
https://interestingengineering.com/12-of-the-worlds-most-fascinating-dams
https://interestingengineering.com/search?q=best+infrastructure
https://interestingengineering.com/the-11-biggest-wind-farms-and-wind-power-constructions-
that-reduce-carbon-footprint
https://www.bauhaus-dessau.de/en/history/bauhaus-dessau.html
https://10mosttoday.com/10-most-famous-urban-parks-in-the-world/\
http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20160618-the-worlds-ten-most-striking-government-buildings
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/33_Thomas_Street
 AR 427B (2335)
PLANNING 4
AR.C.D. VALDIVIA

RSW NO.: PR-02

RSW TITLE:
“INFRASTRUCTURE: PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL FRAMEWORK FOR
URBAN AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT”

DATE ISSUED: 11 FEBRUARY 2019

DATE DUE: 15 FEBRUARY 2019
DATE SUBMITTED: 15 FEBRUARY 2019

DACANAY, DENISE CHRISTINE B.

BS ARCH 4 / 2160166