Since Damon had mentioned the cancelled high speed rail project, I figured some might enjoy seeing the fruits of a similar scale civil engineering project - the I-70 Glenwood Canyon project in Colorado. (It took 12 years and $490 million to complete, still less than a billion when adjusted for inflation)
*40 bridges over 12.5 miles
*15 miles of retaining walls
* 2 4,000-foot-long tunnels
*150,000 new trees and shrubs planted
*30,000 tons of structural and reinforcing steel used
* 810,000 tons of concrete used