Time overrun in infrastructure development projects, especially in bridge construction, are a persistent challenge, leading to increased overall project cost, dissatisfaction among the public, delayed socio-economic benefits, disputes and litigations among the participating parties. This study assessed the time performance and general scenario of time overrun, analyzed the causes and suggested possible mitigation measures to minimize time overrun in local roads bridge projects in Nepal, focusing on Motorable Local Roads Bridge Programme Phase IV (MLRBP-IV) as a case study. The research employed both qualitative and quantitative methods, collecting project details of 136 completed local roads bridge projects and gathering perceptions from 165 respondents via a Google form survey using a 5-point Likert scale. Descriptive analysis was conducted to access the time performance and scenario of time overrun. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to analyze and prioritize the causes of time overrun. Thematic analysis through Key Informants Interview (KII) was conducted to suggest the possible mitigation measures for major causes of time overrun. This study revealed that among 136 studied bridge projects, only 32.35% of the projects were completed within the initial contract duration, while 67.65% experienced delays. On average, projects exceeded their planned timelines by 43%, with a mean completion duration of 845.68 days compared to the mean allocated duration of 592.24 days. Time overruns were remarkable in mountain region projects, with 83.33% of them delayed, compared to 68% in the hill region and 65.45% in the terai region. Foundation type influenced delays, with projects using open foundations exhibiting the highest time overruns, while other foundation types showed better on-time completion rates. The percentages of normal bids and low bids was found to be 44.12% and 55.58% respectively with the threshold for low bids i.e. average percentage of bidding being 20.92% below the engineer’s estimate. 77.63 % of low bids and 55.00 % of normal bids were found to witness different degree of time overrun, indicating low bid projects being more prone to time overrun than normal bid projects. ix Based on PCA, the study identified twenty-four major causes of time overrun and categorized into nine components: External Constraints and Disruptions, Professional and Technical Shortcomings, Organizational Inefficiencies, Contractors Management and Financial Constraints, Contractors Competence and Practice Deficiencies, Unscientific/Unrealistic Contract Duration, Regional topography and access to site, Ineffective delay penalties and Inadequate Pre execution Preparation. Allocation of rational contract duration, detailed site investigation, provision of pool of experts of employers, technical capacity building of technical officials, predictable and performance based transfer mechanism of project staff and timely actions against under- performing contractors with adherence to contractual clauses and provision of Public Procurement Act (PPA) and Public Procurement Regulations (PPR) are the essential mitigation measures to be implemented to minimize time overrun and enhance project efficiency.

Keywords

Time overrun, Bridge projects, Time performance, Contract duration, Mitigation measures, MLRBP-IV

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