by Shane Henson — August 1, 2012—With more than half of all humanity condensed in an area just over 2% of the planet’s land cover, urban infrastructure has become one of the world’s greatest challenges, says KPMG, a global provider of audit, tax, and advisory services. The worldwide demand for infrastructure is expected to require the investment of tens of trillions of dollars over the next four decades in order to create and maintain sustainable and highly livable urban areas that balance the needs of the population, the economy and the environment.
To that end, KPMG’s Global Infrastructure Practice announced the second edition of the Infrastructure 100: World Cities Edition—a high-profile report showcasing 100 of the most innovative and inspiring urban infrastructure projects from around the world.
Released at the recent World Cities Summit in Singapore, this edition provides insight into the infrastructure projects that make great cities, with a particular focus on the innovations that make them “cities of the future”—places where people want to live and do business.
The projects showcased in the Infrastructure 100 are made up of approximately 20 projects selected by independent judging panels of industry experts from five regions of the world, including: Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa. Projects were then sorted into 10 project categories says KPMG, including: Urban Mobility, Global Connectivity, Urban Regeneration, Education, Healthcare, Water, New and Extended Cities, Recycling and Waste Management, Urban Energy Infrastructure, and Communications Infrastructure.
Five regional judging panels assessed hundreds of submissions on the following criteria: feasibility, social impact, technical and/or financial complexity, innovation and impact on society. Of the 100 projects identified by the regional judging panels, 10 were selected by a global judging panel as being the most noteworthy within each project category.
The 2012 feature projects are:
- Urban Mobility: East Side Access, New York City, United States
- Global Connectivity: Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, Delhi to Mumbai, India
- Urban Regeneration: Oresund Regional Development, Denmark and Sweden
- Education: Princess Nora Bint AbdulRahman University for Women, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- Healthcare: Royal London Hospital, London, U.K.
- Water: Tuas II Desalination Plant, Tuas, Singapore
- New and Extended Cities: Tianjin Eco City, Tianjin, China
- Recycling and Waste Management: Deep Tunnel Sewerage System, Kranji to Changi, Singapore
- Urban Energy Infrastructure: Cidade Inteligente, Búzios, Brazil
- Communications Infrastructure: BRICS Cable Project, South Africa and Mauritius
