Top 10 Construction Projects (White Elephants) That Were Huge Wastes of Time and Money - TopTenzNet

Top 10 Construction Projects That Were Huge Wastes of Time and Money
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In ancient Thailand white elephants were given as a sardonic gift, because while they were certainly grand they had little use and required a great deal of care. In modern times the term has been translated to objects which are impressive, but whose cost far exceeds its usefulness. Every town has at least one, but these are the world’s worst offenders.
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Coming up:
10. Russky Bridge
9. Detroit People Mover
8. Ryugyong Hotel
7. Mirabel International Airport
6. Athens Olympic Facilities
5. Lambert-St. Louis Airport Expansion
4. Montreal Olympic Stadium
3. Palace of Parliament
2. Millennium Dome (O2 Arena)
1. New South China Mall
Source/Other reading:
www.telegraph.c...
www.apec2012.ru/
vladivostok-cit...
www.census.gov/...
www.detroitnews...
www.thepeoplemo...
subwaynut.com/d...
theweek.com/art...
www.businessins...
www.dailymail.c...
www.collection...
money.cnn.com/2...
www.airliners.n...
www.montreal-yu...
www.airliners.n...
www.imdb.com/ti...
articles.philly...
www.businessins...
www.baseball-re...
topics.nytimes....
time.com/346207...
science.howstuf...
www.airliners.n...
www.cvgairport....
www.google.com...
www.bridgetonmo...
www.flychicago....
www.dfwairport...
www.google.com...
www.themainmtl....
history1900s.ab...
www.baseball-re...
www.thesportmar...
www.biography.c...
www.lonelyplane...
gov.ro/en
www.britannica....
www.rsh-p.com/w...
www.getactivelo...
www.internation...
www.southchinam...
www.travelchina...
www.travelchina...
dongguan.made-i...

[@lunarahunter4870]

Do a top ten on people who were called crazy but turned out to be right.

[@bristoled93]

William Wagner My parents turned out to be wrong.

[@shiftingsand2555]

Lunara Hunter Nikola Tesla is #1. No question.

[@riotalice2381]

+Lunara Hunter sarah palin on russia invading georgia?

[@sprocastersprocaster]

+bristoled93 christian?

[@zues121510]

Lunara Hunter Trump?

[@andrewgrasham4604]

Love this channel. Keep it up my peeps!!

[@bonscott1998]

andrew g

[@gilbertplays]

The Philippines built a Nuclear Power Plant costing the country $2.3 billion and never used due to defects, corruption, revolution, earthquake fault line, Pinatubo and the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

[@charlieharper4975]

So did California : Rancho Seco

[@Discosaturn]

Don't forget the plant still has technology from the '70s. I think it needs a modern-day upgrade.

[@biocapsule7311]

Am I the only one who thinks the "telecommunication" company helping North Korea with the exterior construction sound a lot like an espionage program?

[@mathieugariepy2948]

I can't believe my hometown of Montreal was mentioned twice. Ouch!

[@annnee6818]

+Jeric Coute (JERICK.O) So the mafia can send empty trucks through building sites, charging for each one 😆

[@mathieugariepy2948]

You remember that?!

[@annnee6818]

+Mathieu Gariépy I wasn't born but that's what I was told happened.

[@jici93]

Concrete trucks arrive at the stadium and immediately returned to Laval. Several basement and pool were made with concrete of the stadium!

[@olic12]

Describe these projects as failures is a lack of general knowledge of the historical context of Quebec. Talking about failure in the case of the stadium is debatable. In the case of Mirabel Airport, yes, it's clear that this project should never have happened! But we must look at the historical context in which all this happened. It was in the "Révolution tranquille". There were tons of big projects. The subway, the artificial islands, construction of a true downtown, with skyscrapers, the roads and all the social and cultural changes that it implies. Yes, there have been mistakes, but, can we imagine Montreal today without that projects? Just without the subway? Today, we no longer dare anything. If we had had the same mentality at that time, we would still be in the 50s ....

[@JMWxx]

I would love to see a Top Tenz video on the greatest (or worst) Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs. I think that would be pretty cool.

[@PSIponies]

I'm from St. Louis. I love St. Louis, but Lambert Airport is terrible. I actually now live in Cincinnati. It is a bit weird going to the airport in Kentucky, but it's a somewhat nice airport.

[@eeeypieter]

Did anyone else get really annoyed by the stuttering diamond shapes in the background/ as transition?

[@Miko_Jones]

eeeypieter Hell yes !

[@nahndeskript]

+eeeypieter Yeah, kinda gave me the feeling that there was a buffering problem (even though I knew better).

[@Zenas521]

It is a terrible transition

[@justentertainingtv9686]

eeeypieter very amateurish, like the content but made me almost not want to finish the video

[@mitree11]

Painful to watch

[@tommytucker5464]

Lol these are nothing compared to China who build entire towns with theme parks that are empty and go to waste

[@certifiedgrammarnazi2290]

AND those cities and parks were made for human to use.

[@certifiedgrammarnazi2290]

+Certified Grammar Nazi *humans*

[@tommytucker5464]

Certified Grammar Nazi Humans who can't afford it?

[@P45K141N3N]

this entire list could be made up of Chinese building projects XD

[@amazingpablo1683]

They're not useless though, all of the projects on this list have no logical reason to to exist or are just plain stupid. But a country where roughly 10 million people move to cities every year they need to be prepared to stop cities from overcrowding. A famous "ghost city" in China is now almost full as populations seek to move from the cramped cities of Beijing etc.

[@StephenDHenderson]

Take it you've never been to the o2? It's kinda half museum half shopping mall with a massive concert space in the middle. Far from without a permanent tenant.

[@watcherzero5256]

StephenDHenderson Indeed, while it sat empty for many years its current function is quite successful (busiest concert venue in the world with 2m annual visitors), it was the gymnastics and basketball venue for the 2012 Olympics and you could probably argue has now pretty much been worthwhile.

[@mackief30000]

London had no big concert venue so that turned it in to one

[@StephenDHenderson]

mackief30000 excel, Wembley arena, earls court? although fair enough the O2 has overtaken all of them combined

[@NapalmFlame]

StephenDHenderson Wembley Stadium too! Coldplay and Green Day played there to a massive crowd

[@StephenDHenderson]

Napalm Flame Literally the world's busiest concert venue

[@nabihamoses4511]

And in Trinidad and Tobago we have the Brian Lara stadium. The construction of which started in 2007 and is still being constructed in 2015. The reason is that the soil they decided to build it on is unsuitable for supporting a stadium. Needless to say the stadium is costing the country millions of dollars.

[@Pulchrior.Evenit]

Hush nah. We don't talk about such things.

[@nabihamoses4511]

Pulchrior Evenit but it's true.

[@Pulchrior.Evenit]

I know, but you know how us Trinis forget so easily.

[@jukka-pekkatuominen4540]

Nabiha Moses This reminds me of Olkiluoto-3. It's a nuclear power plant that is being build in Finland. It was supposed be ready in 2009, but now in 2015 the building is still not completed. It has never been even tested yet. Some have claimed that it's now the most expensive building ever built, because of the delays. If it wasn't an power plant and hopefully has some benefit in the future, I guess it'd easily make into this list.

[@virgoptrex]

Nabiha Moses cricket crazy country!

[@Lanselot2069]

i have been to nr. 3 it is insane. every other room is filled to the brim with gold, diamonds or platinum. it has paintings worth more than my house, and it is so huge, that simply walking from the front door to the roof would take you 15-20 minutes.

[@Justdisco2]

I love thease top tenz, awsome

[@MrNodebate]

+TopTenz Funny that Detroit really had to declare bankruptcy, just like in Robocop! Soon Omni Consumer Products will step in to buy the whole place :)

[@edwinrusinskas3717]

I think the whole of Dubai was a tremendous waste of money...

[@lindseyclair921]

Edwin Rusinskas and considering it's being built by slave labor....

[@jariemonah]

Edwin Rusinskas Nearly all the buildings there are half empty. I think once the oil reserves run out in the future, Dubai will still be the center for the rich in the Middle East, but even more empty. And I don't know if human rights will catch up to them on the slave labor. It's an expensive city to maintain.

[@dragon888193ftw]

J. Marie And what makes you think that all the buildings are half empty? Do you even live there? Congrats, you watched the VICE documentary on how some companies abused workers, that was like... 4-5 years ago. Did you bother to check back on Dubai and see if they changed anything? No. You did not. You're confusing Qatar with Dubai.

[@user-vf3cb7vk8z]

Edwin Rusinskas They don't even have a sewer system in Dubai so they obviously have no idea how to manage their money.

[@davec1615]

@@user-vf3cb7vk8z dubai's real estate market is built on speculation. Its a bubble just waiting to pop.

[@SkkyKiddx]

The Montreal Olympic center is now The Biodome. I went there it's awesome.

[@Milnoc]

SkkyKidd The Biodome only occupies the space of the former velodrome. The main stadium is completely empty most of the time. The only two events it held this year were an exhibition baseball game, the FIFA Women's World Cup, and Monster Trucks. I wasn't sure this list would include either Mirabel Airport or The Big Owe. As it turns out, it included both!

[@mstchiefa7892]

great video, straight to the point no useless atempts at humour, no hour long into

[@NOTHlNG]

"We built this city... We built this city on WAS-TED CASH"

[@alexNicoleWa]

That pronunciation of Trudeau tho... *facepalm*

[@eamonnclifford8734]

Alexandra Warzee He does it deliberately...check out some of the other vids. They're littered with howlers which can only be deliberate.

[@Wikingking]

Eamonn Clifford Yes, pronounciation is terrible at TopTenz, they literally fail to pronounce every single foreign name, venue, place, etc. Too bad, because otherwise their vids are pretty cool, and the topics are fairly unique.

[@NoctumusTV]

Alexandra Warzee It's always a pleasure encountering really bright people like you, who can immediately tell what are the most important/essential things to focus on in a video.

[@alexNicoleWa]

Noctumus No need to be rude... I was just pointing out a bit of ignorance on the creator's part. Never said I don't still love this channel.

[@NoctumusTV]

Alexandra Warzee I know - I was just teasing you, sweetheart ;)

[@nerdbot4446]

Where is the new Airport Berlin-Brandenburg? I guess it belongs to the list "Top 10 Construction Projects (White Elephants) That ARE Huge Wastes of Time and Money"

[@maikbarry9815]

Patrick Star Hamburg´s Elbphilharmonie

[@yoshiiinblack]

I missed that too on this list. Thy're building it since 2006 and it's not even near being finished.

[@Carewolf]

It has a valid reason to be build. It is just managed by corrupt and useless politicians who's seats are so safe they appointed more than elected.

[@sheevone4359]

Augenblick mal Thorsten Dörnbach? Jaaa leck mich am Arsch duuuu alter fickaaa.😉 The thing is Berlin Brandenburg should be a success after being finished. IF it's going to be finished one day

[@Sama3L]

Meanwhile Frankfurt Airport gets bigger and bigger and somehow it works XD

[@HomesteadDreaming]

I lived in Montreal for a few years and my dad still does and I remember flying into Mirabel to visit when I was little and living in the states but then as I got older it changed to Dorval and I remember how happy my dad was, it cut his drive time down in half. I also remember watching the expos at the Olympic stadium. As a kid I always thought it was cool but as an adult not so much lol

[@lolineko6083]

Berlin Airport is missing in the list...

[@Sleepy1026]

Absolute great video man Great work on the research Im so into this channel Keep up the great work man👋🏼

[@gegepi24]

I live near Mirabel Aeroport and yes is a good place for zombies movies !!! And the Stadium at Montreal is also call the big toilet bowl !!!!

[@samir.warsi7]

Love this video.... great... and the way its narrated...

[@39PSIOnTheDaily]

Pierre Elliott Trudeau (True-doe)Dorval (Door-val) (As in Val-entine)Mirabel (Mayr-ah-bell) Just some help there, for future reference.

[@Mike12522]

When the ' Big Owe ' , Number 4, was being built, huge concrete inner ring sections were put in. When the very last, and most vital section was positioned, it didn't fit ! It was too wide. The architect, manufacturers, government, city, and construction people swore at each other for weeks, thus delaying the entire project. I don't know if they had to re-make the entire section, or if they shaved some off and re-positioned the vital connections and holes within it.

[@tedbyrne88]

Today Simon must cringe at 6 years ago Simon. The way he now brings his personality into videos is incredible and keeps me watching

[@419Films]

4:34 - As a Canadian, I just have to say - "Pierre Elliott TROO-DOH", not "TRU-DOO".

[@invicta1313]

I don't even understand why we have the Olympics anymore. Does anyone even care who wins anything anymore? It's like F1 at this point...so professionalized and specialized it only matters to people who already care about the sport. And there's no real political or social meaning to any of it now that the Cold War is over. I just don't see the point in all the socioeconomic upheaval and displacement...which always comes back on the poor of the host countries. Seriously, doesn't the world have bigger problems right now? Are we going to end up like the Romans, starving to death as we sit in the Colosseum, asking "How much for THAT meat?"

[@canuck21]

Richard Rowe The Cold War is very much alive. The West and Russia still don't get along and same thing with China. I for one still care for the Olympics. If you like sports, the Olympics is the top competition.

[@invicta1313]

canuck21 LOL...no, man. Just no. The Cold War is as over as over can be. Russia isn' t the USSR anymore, and it's the USSR we were in conflict with. Russia these days doesn't pose any kind of threat to us. Frankly, if they weren't so busy importing our economy and jobs, I'd be more worried about China than Russia by a longshot. As to the sports thing...that may be part of the problem. I don't care about any Olympic sports, at all lol.

[@canuck21]

Richard Rowe Russia isn't the USSR anymore and officially the Cold War is over, but NATO still exists and that's why Russia doesn't like it. You may LOL but the threat is there. You're extremely naive for thinking everything is over. It is NOT.

[@invicta1313]

canuck21 Oh, man...what's Russia going to do to us? Throw rusted submarines at our laser cannon deathbots? I mean, I'm not militaristic, but I'm so not worried about them lol. A "Cold War" requires equal and mutual threat...Russia might be deluded enough to think there's still a conflict with the US, but nobody here cares about them at all.

[@canuck21]

Richard Rowe Boy are you stupid. You're underestimating Russia's capabilities big time. Typical of ignorant Americans.

[@Henchman1977]

Take notice that 2 of these are in Quebec, Canada.

[@travelingrandom3106]

Ian Colquhoun people at power do not know how to use resource with intelligence

[@Rancid-Jane]

Montreal has a long history of corrupt city politicians. They would get kickbacks from the mob who controlled the construction industry. So the bigger the project the more under-the-table money came back to city hall.

[@eeeeeoww]

Rancid Jane i mean at least the last failed project was in the 70s-80s

[@navarmaxted9976]

1:37 - "I've sold monorails to Brockway, Ogdenville, and North Haverbrook and by gum it put them on the map!"

[@jca111]

Whilst the O2/Dome did sit empty for a few years - it is now very successful. 2 concert venues (Arena and smaller indigo), Cinemas, Shops, and restaurants. It is very busy and now a go to venue for any major rock/pop artist in London.

[@PlayStatiowned]

Coming from Montreal, i absolutely love the way he pronounces everything french and i will start saying it like that! People are so uptight about how things are

[@Elmaestrodemusica]

Excellent!! I've heard of many of these - but not Dongguan!!

[@SKINATHEPSYCHO]

All of Pyongyang

[@jacksonwilson4919]

fak yuuuu

[@razgriz821]

Kim Jong Un what you said translated to "yuuuun of fake".. hehe..

[@WillBassman]

Kim Jong Un Oh noes! It is Kim Jong Un! We better run away before he nukes us!

[@cozyvoyage5142]

Kim Jong Un All of North Korea. :P

[@jariemonah]

Eden Morales Hey hey, it still gets visitors like Dennis Rodman and... Dennis Rodman.

[@BenNatB]

Keep It Going! Great Vids!

[@HXTPJH]

Nailed "Dongguan". Butchered "Guangzhou".

[@DavidChipman]

Butchered "Trudeau" and "Dorval" too. Suprisingly, he gout "Mirabel" right!

[@CrippledChaosClown]

Love this Channel I Keep it on Auto-Play while I'm Cleaning, :) (If It Can Make you Smile while Dusting 10/10). The Narrator has a Perfectly Balanced Sarcastic, Funny and Informative / (Weird Fact You'll Never Need to Know, But Now you're Never Going to Forget it) Voice. Keep up the Good work Guy's!!! And is it Possible to get a Top Ten 'Surprisingly Successful Musicals' Please? (I Know it's Not in Your Usual Topics but, I Love this Channel, and Shockingly I Love Musicals)

[@SuperVideohog]

Really a marvelous list show

[@cozzie49]

The O2 arena definitely doesn't belong in this list (anymore). It's literally the world's busiest arenas and in 2017 and 2018 more people visited here than Madison Square Garden in NYC. If you go there now, there's a pretty crazy amount of tourists there all the time, and it's got a huge bar/restaurant/mall/cinema in the foyer that's always heaving.

[@dogvom]

Dorval is not pronounced DOR'-vul, but dor-VAL. Trudeau is not pronounced tra-DOO, but TRUE-dough. As for the Millennium Dome, it was built a year too early. Since the millennium actually began on January 1, 2001 (as there was no Year Zero) Londoners should have had a perfectly good idea of what to do with the Dome on that date. Since they were seemingly oblivious to this fact, the structure is a fitting monument to those who foolishly believe that the new decade/century/millennium started at the beginning of 2000 rather than at the end.

[@Webbse08]

No country that hosts the Olympics or World Cup EVER makes money off it, no matter how much they've cocked it up. They're extravagant events designed to make the host country overspend and make a statement to the globe. Brazil is the perfect example of both.

[@jyashin]

Most developed countries do end up making money, but because of the high overhead it takes a while to turn a profit. Beijing turned a profit after about 5 years, while Montreal turned a profit almost 30 years later. The country just needs the infrastructure and already present economy to overcome the short-term loss.

[@priestpilot]

I would like to add a bit to Mirabel Airport. I don't think it was necessarily used for refueling, Gander Airport in Newfoundland was actually a way better place to refuel (which sees little use nowadays because of longer range airliners). At the time Montréal was Canada's largest city and its economic and cultural center, and where most immigrants moved to. The city was expected to grow and air travel to grow accordingly. Also at the time, most foreign airlines were required to stop in Montréal and not fly directly to other Canadian cities (such as Toronto). However, this growing demand has since shifted to Toronto. And the decision to keep Dorval for domestic and Mirabel for international made this airport even more inconvenient. There was a highway that was built to reach the airport but it had a toll on it at the time, and a rail link was planned but never built. Even though Montréal remains Canada's second largest city, Dorval Airport is now the third or fourth busiest after Toronto Pearson, Vancouver, and very close to Calgary.

[@stanmcserr8576]

The Expos didn't leave because they weren't given a new stadium. They left because nobody went to see them. It wasn't uncommon to have less than 500 people in the stands. I remember my Father telling me how stupid it was to have a team in Quebec. The French have no interest in American culture. Nothing to do with Quebec but Disney should have known better., as well.

[@theme7363]

You pronounced the Canadian airport as "trah-doo" but it's "troo-doh" Actually we just got a new prime minister with that name.

[@sebastienberger2890]

the me The airport name is the name of the father of our prime minister

[@theme7363]

Seb Gontrand Yeah, but they have the same last name and its pronounced the same

[@0404chrisjz]

We don’t care

[@oliviawilliams6204]

Not just same name... his son

[@theme7363]

Olivia Williams yup

[@amb163]

True-Doh, rhymes with Play-Doh (Trudeau). Great list, though :)

[@chipo715]

The Olympics and World Cup are terrible decisions and financial disasters for countries that don't already have the infrastructure to support it. When was the last time a country made profit on a worldwide event? Brazil had civil unrest, Russia has hotels and stadiums already is decay from the prev Olympics, and now Putin wants the owner of Chelsea football club to give him 1 billion dollars so Russia can create the promised infrastructure for World Cup 2022 and Qatar World Cup 2018 is already disaster a it's not for another 3 years

[@seadealer]

Paul Cipollini Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022. But I get what you're saying.

[@KlunkerRider]

Paul Cipollini Both can easily be done economically and financially successfully, but in both cases the only way involves ejecting both governing bodies and reconstituting them with people who will guide the organizations with more prudence.

[@jukka-pekkatuominen4540]

Paul Cipollini The most recent Olympic Games that turned profit was Seoul, South Korea (in 1988). Or at least what I was able to find out. Some cities have turned profit later after the games though. I remember that when the games were about to start in Vancouver (Canada), Montreal made news when they were able to make profit from the games starting of that year. It was in 2010 and Montreal's Olympic Games were held in 1976. So yeah. I can agree that those decisions are pretty terrible.

[@jukka-pekkatuominen4540]

Checked some of this.. Seoul seems to be Olympic Games that made the most profit, but it is not the most recent one. The most recent one that made profit seems to be Beijing (although I have some doubts about that). Before Beijing there were the Olympics of Salt Lake City.

[@tk9780]

Jukka-Pekka Tuominen Seems you've manage to put 100% more effort into researching facts than the makers of this video.

[@babecat2000]

Nice you mentioned Lambert air port. What a mess they made of it.

[@atlantasailor1]

One you missed is in the Congo. A 400 million $ palace constructed by Mobutu called Gbadolite. It's runway accommodated the supersonic Concorde. Google this name for pics. It it mostly destroyed now but some pics show it's past glory. Great video! Enjoyed! Thanks!

[@brendonhalverson5178]

Actually the thing about the bridge in Russia, is the island IS developing, and will continue to.

[@Rancid-Jane]

We can only hope.

[@johnfakename1178]

Here's a waste of money: My college fund! I have no future...

[@sprocastersprocaster]

+Tucker Stackow :(

[@RoyalKnightVIII]

*badum-tsh*

[@kewintaylor7056]

Omg -..-' sorry to hear tat

[@LEDbacklighting]

"You are not alone" -Michael Jackson

[@conditionedair4353]

just come with me to canada college is like $4k

[@renauddupras1586]

The montreal olimpic stadium was not only a disater because of the security cost. Corruption was a massive problem too. It is said that 3 to 4 time the concrete that was used was charged.

[@Vanqofficial]

Just curious, how many people are working at TopTenz? Is it your full time jobs? The frequency with which you make videos is incredible, considering how much research must go into each video.

[@SiskinOnUTube]

They're building a 2km skyscraoer for all the staff.

[@georgel9498]

The Montreal stadium is currently the bio dome which is a cool zoo. I went there and the observation tower had a diagonal elevator so it was very cool

[@chriss.9398]

Here is a novel idea for saving people money! Build Olympic stadiums somewhere in Europe(it is after all based in European Greek history) and have every country participating contribute some amount of money in the building and upkeep of it. Next, you keep the Olympics in this location indefinitely or until every country decides to move it to a new location. That way not one country is left with the bill.

[@johnny45irish]

I remember visiting the Millennium Dome as a little kid and thinking it was awesome. I remember watching a special made version of Black Adder where Baldrick builds a time machine, a weird film with sycamores and a little girl who walks out of the screen, as well as having my picture taken with ET. I also remember going to McDonalds and my Dad getting three Happy Meals to himself and me having the "Big Bag" meal which was popular then, with a hot dog :)

[@AlonsoRules]

Hey TopTenz, check out the Korean International Circuit - massive white elephant

[@jpheisondorf9176]

They turned the Olympic Stadium in Montreal into a Bio-dome, it's a pretty big tourist attraction now.

[@MokokerMovies]

nice list dude interesting subject

[@danielcristea3868]

Amazing amazing amazing thanks bud

[@kansascityshuffle4141]

I'm sure everyone has heard about the Fifa corruption. The Olympics operate the same way. These countries pay to host it for who knows what reason. They are then required to build lavish venues which will never be used again costing the country millions. This is just a recent example: Russia spent 42 billion(American) on the Olympics and made roughly 22 billion and that's being very kind with the numbers.

[@loveandrockets4life]

You could totally do a top ten list on Kansas City, Missouri construction projects alone.

[@andrefiset3569]

The Mirabel terminal was use for the movie The Terminal with Tom Hanks, it was vacant at this time but since have been demolished. It was also the phase 1 of 6 terminals planned to make the biggest aeroport of the world. The expropriation of many farmers is still remember as the most negative aspect of this saga.

[@frankiz2009]

As a Montrealer I love the Olympic Stadium anyway :) Even though there's still roof issues. Or that it cost way too much, but honestly everything here, especially infrastructures, is suspiciously expensive. Just take the new Champlain bridge projected to cost 4B$.

[@thecatsman]

Brilliantly written, an inspiration for politicians short of ideas of how to waste taxpayers' money.

[@jorgescbr]

You should add Ecuadorian infrastructure built last ten years: airports with two or none flights per day, highways seldom used (ruta Collas) and a oil refinery (Refinería del Pacífico) that was started but not finished.

[@OAlem]

You did some serious research there. Very interesting. I had heard of some of these but some are quite shocking! Especially the Romanian palace and Bridgeton.

[@ArsenalEcho]

The Montreal Olympic Stadium was mostly called "The Big Owe" for pretty obvious reasons!

[@oliviawilliams6204]

ArsenalEcho or the giant toilet

[@dejang2115]

"Operation screw (town)" that got me like a goat 😂 your videos are hilarious!

[@nielspemberton59]

Mirabel was a GREAT IDEA and a proper one too. But IT WAS BOTCHED BY THE POLITICIANS ! The access was inadequate..

[@PoorlyAttached]

The Ryugyong Hotel is..actually really damn good looking with glass on.

[@surroundgatari]

It's architectural style is actually really unique, being designed with 3 wings instead of the usual 2.

[@jariemonah]

PoorlyAttached Yeah, just airlift it from Pyongyang to Seoul, and I'll stay for one night.

[@phdcpe01]

I enjoyed it!

[@SafeAndEffectiveTheySaid]

You can add to this list many Brazilian's stadiums build for 2014 world cop.

[@ede_1]

"Romania isn't really big.." Greece is small? Are you kidding me??

[@geirtwo]

9:45 But that *Mega* *Robot* was not disappointed. "Ghasp! A STADIUM !!"

[@kwanlinus6999]

I think Nolinor Aviation uses Mirabel as their main hub, and Bombardier tested their new c-series planes there as well.

[@JohnDoe-ze8wy]

Glad Mirabel made your list the BTW other airport is spelled as Dorval and pronounced as " door - val" not " door - vel"

[@dangerouslytalented]

Some of the stadiums in Athens are being used for refugee camps.

[@Rancid-Jane]

Human stupidity knows no bounds. How utterly depressing.

[@runswimsc]

I live about 3 miles from the South China Mall in Dongguan. It is still mostly empty. Now, the largest occupant is a grocery store called Spar. A place called "Amazing World" is a small, indoor amusement park that was in the mall. It is no longer working either.

[@donaldjenner489]

Wonderful! Even more wonderful: People made money on these absurdities.

[@thebay3080]

The second largest mall in the world is in Beijing, China, but with only 20 people per hour, it was also another waste of money. So if you take out the 2 Chinese malls, the largest mall in the world (respectable to the foot traffic) is in Manila, Philippines. (BTW the Filipino mall industry is so huge. There's a saying that the Philippines needs a mall every sq. kilometer. But they boast and basically control the list of largest malls.)

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

The Bay At least they got it down pat.

[@FireFlyDani]

I'm missing the Berlin Airport here :/. Costs until now: 4.182.925.000 €. Costs per day: 1.297.142 €. Still not ready. Everyday a new problem. Corruption, bungling, etc. Actually some ppl say that it would be cheaper and quicker to built BERLIN next to a big but functional Airport.

[@omegaman6193]

Rio, Athens, and all of these countries with white elephants should host the games again and again so it’s atleast used everywhere 12 years or so.

[@TheSateef]

you should do one on wasteful military projects if you haven't already.

[@theultimatereductionist7592]

Exactly

[@bingola45]

Y2K... an abbreviation that means something to old people...

[@rumlerille]

Love that the most visited shop I. The Chinese mall is mc.donalds, lol, I'm still laughing after 8-9 minutes! Great job!

[@Alexroberts666]

hah, I knew the millennium dome would be on here

[@NickRoman]

just goes to show what people can do when they even a little bit start to care about and support the same thing.

[@RKBock]

i was expecting to find berlin's airport, but i think the media was good enough at "forgetting" that one

[@Orange_Laowai]

The new south China mall now has 43 stores with 12 more planned.

[@JayV98]

Some of this money could've been used to build the Chicago Spire. That would've been so cool.

[@harrisoncoleman621]

The Detroit People Mover is now connected to the Detroit QLINE light rail and connects to everything around the city! Great way to get around.

[@jacobprice2579]

On the Egyptians completing No.8, I suppose Egypt is where you turn when you need a giant unnecessary triangle building.

[@jeffredi57]

Late to this but very interesting!

[@JosephJoboLicayan]

That is why you leave making malls to Filipinos or Capitalists

[@nathanlong8295]

Joseph Jobo Licayan finally someone who gets it!

[@matthewmichaelson9806]

Wow, I thought the Denver airport was going to be on here, but these buildings are much more appropriate!

[@Treetop64]

Matthew Michaelson KDEN gets a lot of traffic. It's never maxed out, but it's a pleasant airport, is well laid out, and it stays fairly busy, especially with United and Frontier.

[@jariemonah]

Matthew Michaelson It's funny because out of every city in the US, I think Denver would profit the most from the Winter Olympics. Lake Tahoe and Salt Lake City are still using their facilities.

[@backslash68]

In a few years the MOSE project (mobile dams to protect Venice from high tides) will enter this TopTen and presumably at a very high position: it costed 5 billion Euros so far, it is supposed to start working in 2018 and it is already falling to pieces and rusting.

[@Robinem]

My hometown, not well known outside the UK, spent four years and supposedly millions (can't find a figure online think its was at least £2 million (£2.7 million today or $3.5 million)) to renovate a railway bridge because it got to the point it could barely handle the amount of traffic it was getting. But when it was completed it became famous as an expensive, almost identical looking, eyesore because of its most notable difference which is a massive modernist metal archway above it. Ok it was not no where near as expensive as the entries on this list, but it definitely tops the list of local construction projects that were in this case justified but still the a huge waste of money.

[@xzazen]

Very informative and love the toneless banter! ***** STARZ