Infrastructure Lock-in

09/05/19

“What are the consequences of large-scale investment in outdated infrastructure technologies?”

Institutions are constantly faced with difficult infrastructure decisions. Should they invest in experimental technologies such as renewable energy and distributed battery systems or opt for more traditional oil pipelines? Well, whatever approach is taken, the infrastructure and supply chain created will exist for multiple generations to come and will create heavy inertia to shift. A fine illustration of this is the difficulty of shifting the United States to mass transit due to its car and road dependent paradigm. This Infrastructure Lock-in must be dealt with when making policy decisions.