The challenges of infrastructure : complexity, (ir)rationalities, and the search for better governance / Kai Wegrich, Gerhard Hammerschmid, and Genia Kostka -- pt. 1. Theoretical perspective. Infrastructure governance and political choice / Kai Wegrich and Gerhard Hammerschmid ; Accountability challenges in the governance of infrastructure / Jacint Jordana ; Infrastructure and the principle of the hiding hand / Helmut K. Anheier -- pt. II. Delivering infrastructure. Risk management for megaprojects / Werner Rothengatter ; Public-private partnerships : a framework for private sector involvement in public intrastructure projects / Carlos Oliviera Cruz and Nuno F. da Cruz -- Scale, risk and construction cost overruns for electricity infrastructure : governance and policy implications / Benjamin K . Sovacool, Autumn Proudlove and Nathaniel Green ; Improving public procurement / Matthias Haber -- pt. III. Regional challenges. Infrastructure for whom? Corruption risks in infrastructure provision across Europe / Mihály Fazekas and Bence Tóth ; Pioneer risks in large infrastructure projects in Germany / Niklas Anzinger and Genia Kostka ; The governance of intrastructure in multiparty presidentialism / Marcus André Melo and Carlos Pereira ; Strategic environmental assessment and public participation in infrastructure siting : Klickitat County, Washington's Wind Energy Overlay Zone / Hilary S. Boudet and Joseph Grandolfo.

Infrastructure only tends to be noticed when it is absent, declining, or decrepit, or when enormous cost overruns, time delays, or citizen protests make the headlines. If infrastructure is indeed a fundamental driver of economic growth and social development, why is it so difficult to get right? In addressing this perennial question, this volume-the fourth edition in an annual series tackling different aspects of governance around the world-makes the case for a governance perspective on infrastructure. This implies moving beyond rational economic analysis of what should be done towards an analysis of the political, institutional, and societal mechanisms that shape decision-making about infrastructure investment, planning, and implementation. Engaging with theories from sociology, political science, and public administration, and drawing on empirical analyses bridging OECD and non-OECD countries, the contributions to this volume dissect the logics of infrastructure governance in a novel way, providing timely analyses that will enrich both scholarly and policy debates about how to get infrastructure governance right.