December 16 2025 | Procure | Tenders | Virtual Data Rooms
In this excerpt from our 2025 Transport Infrastructure Outlook Report , developed in partnership with Infralogic, Craig Covil, Principal & Managing Director at C2 Consulting explores how risk allocation, procurement transparency, and technology are shaping the future of transport infrastructure projects.
Risk allocation is a major concern in large-scale transport infrastructure projects. What are the most critical factors in getting it right?
Transport projects tend to be larger and take longer than social infrastructure projects. The key thing is defining the project properly upfront – getting the cost and schedule right, running a proper risk assessment, and making sure it’s budgeted correctly before going into procurement.
One of the big changes in the US is the federal requirement for a Value for Money (VfM) study on infrastructure projects that take federal dollars. That report defines the project, assesses risk, and, critically, determines the best delivery method – P3, design-build, CMAR, or design-bid-build. It also forces owners to look at whether they actually have the capability to do a P3.
One of the worst things is when an owner goes down the P3 route without the internal structure (legislation, personnel, advisors, training, etc.) to manage it.
What are some of the biggest challenges in procurement today?
A major issue is risk sharing and transparency. Owners often hold back critical project data – like geotechnical and utility relocations – until after bidders have been shortlisted. That’s backwards.
If a bidder finds out after being shortlisted that the geology makes the project unviable for them, they might pull out, wasting everyone’s time. More mature procurement processes get everything into a secure data room and share it from the start. That way, bidders can assess the risks early on. The US is particularly slow on this, but with the right digital tools, it’s solvable.
Infrastructure projects are becoming larger and more complex. How can technology enhance the procurement of these critical assets?
The scale of data in infrastructure procurement today is enormous. It’s no longer just a binder of geotechnical reports – plus all the other Reference Information Documents (RIDs) – it’s half a room’s worth of data, all in different formats. Digital platforms make managing that data more efficient. They provide layered security, control who sees what, and ensure that bidders receive information at the same time. Crucially, they create an auditable process – so if an owner provides a hundred years’ worth of geological data in the data room a few weeks before the bid deadline, there’s a record of that.
How is ESG affecting risk allocation in procurement?
ESG is definitely a factor, but the debate is around how much weight it should carry. Should it decide whether a new toll road gets built? Probably not. But should it be part of evaluating the best option? Absolutely. The problem is that ESG-related studies can take up to 10 years on major projects, by which time the original purpose of the project has changed.
There’s also the issue of mid-project changes – if noise regulations shift after a contractor has started work, who takes that risk? The contractor will say, “That’s not what I bid,” and the owner will say, “That’s federal law.” Then you get disputes, delays, and cost overruns. The contract needs to be clear and there are many good examples out there including those provided by the Association for the Improvement of American Infrastructure (AIAI) and the Design Build Institute of America (DBIA).
What does the future of infrastructure procurement look like?
It’s going to get faster, more digital, and more secure. There’s going to be heightened scrutiny on security, especially when you have people moving between bidding teams during a two-year procurement process. If someone has had access to sensitive procurement data while working for one bidder and then moves to another, how do you ensure that information doesn’t give the new employer an unfair advantage?
In extreme cases, you could see situations where individuals are hired specifically to gain insight into a competitor’s bid strategy. That’s why procurement teams will need stronger controls on data access – ensuring that platforms track who has accessed what, when, and for how long.
We’re going to see much more focus on auditing and validation – whether that’s checking AIgenerated content, tracking who had access to what data, or ensuring evaluation criteria are clear and objective from the outset. Procurement is evolving, and owners, advisors, and bidders all need to keep up.
