Why is Canada's infrastructure so bad?

It quickly becomes apparent to almost everyone how poor and rickety the infrastructure is in Canada.

This certainly applies to the roads, which are often of an old-fashioned design and full of holes.

But it also applies to the power supply that keeps failing because a tree has fallen on an overhead power line somewhere.

The drinking water supply is also substandard. There are frequent water shortages, followed by rationing—but even the water quality leaves much to be desired. And the pipes keep breaking because they're so old and rotten. Even mobile phone service is rickety.

But what has truly become a problem is the inadequate planning of housing. There are far too few owner-occupied and rental properties to accommodate the enormous population growth. The shortage is alarming, and prices have skyrocketed.

Many hospitals and government buildings are also in poor condition.

For Canadians, it is practically the most normal thing in the world that buildings, roads and other facilities are used up to the point of collapse.

People generally don't feel the need to improve things until there is absolutely no way out.

This means that people are constantly behind on maintenance schedules, which leads to many additional problems in daily use.

Regular maintenance is often announced as an improvement project, while it is not at all.

It costs money to bury the electrical wires. And it also costs a fortune to keep the water pipes up to date.

That's basically what it boils down to. People simply don't want to invest in things they can only use later.

The entire political system revolves around instant successes. This is reflected in the rickety infrastructure and lackluster planning that underlie the housing crisis.

Expensive housing, absurd asking prices and major shortages, that's what Canadians have to deal with!