Pedestrian and Bicycle Infrastructure: A National Study of Employment Impacts

How to cite this study

Garrett-Peltier, H. 2011. Pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. A national study of employment impacts. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Political Economy Research Institute.

Overview

This report estimates the job creation resulting from the construction of bicycle and pedestrian facilities such as bike paths, trails, sidewalks, and related projects. Based on data from transportation and public works departments in 11 cities with 58 projects, the author estimated that on average, these infrastructure projects create 9 in-state jobs for each $1 million of spending and an additional 3 jobs if out-of-state effects are included. Bicycle-only infrastructure projects contributed to the highest level of job creation.

Relevance

This study is relevant to leaders interested in assessing the job impacts of infrastructure projects. Including pedestrian crossings, sidewalks, and multi-use trails in communities can improve safety and health of users and provide local jobs. Though the study follows the Transportation Research Board’s (TRB) methodology, it only focuses on the capital costs of building pedestrian and bicycle transportation infrastructure. It does not include the costs of ongoing maintenance.

Location

This study encompasses 58 projects in 11 cities: Anchorage, Alaska; Austin Texas; Baltimore, Maryland; Bloomington, Indiana; Concord, New Hampshire; Eugene, Oregon; Houston, Texas; Lexington, Kentucky; Madison, Wisconsin; Santa Cruz, California, and Seattle, Washington.

Trail Type

This report studies the employment impacts of multiple types of infrastructure projects. They are categorized as: bicycle infrastructure only, off-street multi-use trails, on-street bicycle and pedestrian facilities (without road construction), pedestrian infrastructure only, road infrastructure with bicycle and pedestrian facilities, road infrastructure with pedestrian facilities, and road infrastructure only (no bike or pedestrian components).

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to understand the employment impacts of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. The researcher partnered with America Bikes, a coalition of seven biking organizations that advocate for cycling needs in the United States.

Findings

When the authors report the employment impacts for the various types of projects, they show the number of full-time equivalent jobs that are created for each $1 million of spending on any given project. This allows for the comparison of results across cities whose budgets are different and eliminates variation in the data arising from regional price differences. 

• For all projects, the average level of job creation is 4.7 direct jobs, 2.1 indirect jobs, and 2.1 induced jobs, for a total of about 9 jobs per $1 million spending. 
• Out of all the project studies, the greatest level of job creation comes from infrastructure projects that specifically support cycling. This results in an average of 6 direct jobs per $1 million of spending, 2.4 indirect jobs, and 3 induced jobs for a total of 11.4 jobs created for each $1 million spent on bicycling infrastructure. 
• The lowest level of job creation is for road-only projects such as repaving or widening roads. This creates 4 direct, 1.8 indirect, and 1.8 induced jobs for a total of 7.8 jobs per $1 million spent on road-only infrastructure. 
• The median level of total job creation out 58 projects was about 9 jobs per $1 million invested.