This study found that the Galbraith Mountain mountain bike trail system is a valuable asset for local residents, many of whom moved to the area or stay in the area because of the trails, and for visitors, who visit frequently and spend money at local businesses. While the club building the trails is developing a destination-worthy trail system, they are also providing significant benefits for the local cycling community.
Pacific
Project Brief: The Economic Impact of Mountain Bicycle Events in Oregon
This study found that mountain biking events in Oregon are popular, with a large proportion of overnight visitors who stay for several nights. While these events can generate a large spending infusion for local businesses, particularly in small communities, it is typically short-lived unless the event adds to visitation throughout the season.
Columbia River Gorge Bicycle Recreation: Economic Impact Forecast for the Communities along the Historic Columbia River Highway
This study found that road cycling and mountain biking are valuable sources of income for communities close to the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail. According to survey results, a proposed trail improvement that would increase the uninterrupted length of the trail and improve rider safety could significantly increase economic impact by increasing the trail’s appeal for overnight users.
The Economic Significance of Bicycle-Related Travel in Oregon: Detailed State and Travel Region Estimates, 2012
This study found that bicycle-related tourism in Oregon attracts many visitors, both from within and outside the state, to participate in a range of activities. While the impacts of visitor spending are relatively small relative to the state’s economy, it likely has a large effect in smaller towns, especially when associated with large events.
Economic Impacts of MVSTA Trails and Land Resources in the Methow Valley
This study found that the 200-kilometer Nordic skiing trail network in the Methow Valley of Washington state is the reason why many people visit the area and choose to purchase homes there. Non-resident trail users and residents alike are largely willing to pay some amount of money to support trail maintenance and additional trail construction.
Estimating Social Welfare Using Count Data Models: An Application to Long-Run Recreation Demand Under Conditions of Endogenous Stratification and Truncation
This study found that surveys that directly extrapolate the number of times an individual person visits a trail to the general population will significantly overstate the future trail use. Care must be taken to account for the differences between those interviewed at the trailhead and the rest of the population.
Trails on Tribal Lands in the United States
This study found that the benefits of trails in Indian Country may be more significant than in other communities that are less culturally or spatially fragmented, less politically and economically marginalized, or less culturally tied to the landscape. Trails can provide particularly valuable benefits to residents of Indian Country, helping to improve residents’ quality of life in several dimensions: connecting tribal members to each other and to culturally significant sites and natural resources; providing safe alternative transportation routes across the reservation; providing opportunities for safe exercise; and providing opportunities for economic development and cultural education.
A Hedonic Travel Cost Analysis for Valuation of Multiple Components of Site Quality: The Recreation Value of Forest Management
This study found that wilderness trail users are willing to travel farther (and therefore spend more) to reach trails with campgrounds, old-growth forests, and views. Conversely, they avoid trails with long dirt road approaches and clear-cuts visible from the trail.
Estimating the Benefits and Costs to Mountain Bikers of Changes in Trail Characteristics, Access Fees, and Site Closures: Choice Experiments and Benefits Transfer
This study found that all mountain bikers, from casual to the most avid, are most likely to ride on trails without hikers or equestrians, and are willing to pay a fee to ride on these trails. While mountain bikers are more likely to use singletrack trails, only the most avid are willing to pay a fee to extend the proportion of a ride that is singletrack.
Outdoor Recreation Net Benefits of Rail-Trails
This study found that trail users are willing to incur greater expenses and travel further to use rural trails, and spend more time on those trails while they are there, indicating these trails are enjoyed by both locals and non-locals. Urban trails, on the other hand, are mainly a resource for local residents, and are used much more frequently and for shorter periods of times.
The Tongass Transition Framework: A New Path Forward?
This report examines whether the Tongass Transition Framework, which proposed a “new path forward,” is working to enhance economic opportunities in southeast Alaska while conserving the National Forest.
Owyhee Canyonlands Hold Economic Potential
This report provides an initial analysis of the potential economic impact of protecting the Owyhee Canyonlands area in Malheur County, Oregon.
West Is Best: Protected Lands Promote Washington Jobs and Higher Incomes
This fact sheet summarizes Washington’s recent economic growth and the role of protected public lands in supporting faster job creation and higher per-capita income.
West Is Best: Protected Lands Promote California Jobs and Higher Incomes
This California report is part of a series that analyzes how and why the West is outperforming the nation, and the competitive advantage offered by its protected lands.
West Is Best: Protected Lands Promote Oregon Jobs and Higher Incomes
The great majority of Oregon’s net new jobs are from services industries, many of them high-paying. This report looks at the state’s economy and the role of protected public lands.
Oregon Home Building, Higher Temperatures Drive Price Tag Ever Higher
This Headwaters Economics study analyzes the impact of housing and climate on the costs of fighting forest fires in National Forests of Oregon.
Olympic Peninsula Economy and Potential Impact of Draft Wild Olympics Proposal
Report on the economy of the Olympics Peninsula and impact of the Wild Olympics proposal.
Northern California, Homes, and Cost of Wildfires
This Headwaters Economics study analyzes the impact of housing and climate on the costs of fighting forest fires in the twelve national forests of the Sierra Nevada.
Improving Deschutes County’s Competitiveness
The report analyzes the economic and fiscal challenges facing Deschutes County and provides recommendations to improve economic prospects.
The Siskiyou Region: Demographic, Economic, and Fiscal Fundamentals
The Siskiyou region is undergoing a significant economic transition. This report examines the region, counties within the region, and industry-level details.