Evidence-based policies and the meaning of success: The case of a road built under Design Build Finance and Operate (DBFO)

This article uses a case study approach based on documents provided by the Department for Transport's executive Highways Agency, information in the public domain and interviews of key players associated with a 'successful' project to examine the nature of evidence-based policy Few evaluations exist of whether public-private partnerships achieve their objectives and the study focuses on those objectives that specifically relate to the policy of using private finance: risk transfer; building to time and budget: and innovation. We conclude that 'success' is determined at a micro level on the basis of technical achievement but that broader social and financial objectives on which the policy is based have not been assessed. © The Policy Press.