The pushback on full DFBOM concessions will lead to more DBF projects, says Matt Walsh, co-chairman of Walsh Construction. “Like design-build, this train has left the station,” he says “and it’s going to pick up speed.”

Tom Mulvihill agrees. As Managing Director and Head of Infrastructure & Public–Private Partnerships at KeyBanc Capital Markets, he sees “a pipeline of several dozen transportation projects over the next few years, many of which may be delivered as DBFs.”

“We’ll see more and more of this” because public sponsors increasingly are pulling back from developer funding of the long-term O&M component of a P3, he says. “DBF’s rely on short term gap financing which is an appealing way to accelerate projects now through leveraging future funding streams.”