Fast-tracking Wasatch Front transit investments: economic and demographic impacts of a 2025 build-out

journal articleOver the next 30 years, the Wasatch Front will significantly expand its transit network. Plans include the construction of an additional 25 miles of light rail, 76 miles of commuter rail, 227 miles of bus rapid transit, and 29 miles of mountain transportation rail line. These projects will be built in Davis, Morgan, Salt Lake, Tooele, Utah, and Weber counties, and are included in the long-range plans of the Wasatch Front Regional Council and the Mountainland Association of Governments. This study evaluates the employment, population, and personal income impacts associated with the construction of these projects on an accelerated schedule, resulting in the 2040 plan reaching completion by 2025. This estimated $11 billion (constant 2010 dollars)1 investment in the regional transit system would significantly affect the economic development potential and relative competitiveness of the entire metropolitan area. Further, the projects will have major impacts on land use patterns, real estate developments, travel costs, and accessibility within and across the region. Transportation planners and policy analysts justifiably focus on these types of comprehensive, long-run impacts. However, the significant shortrun economic activity resulting from these major construction projects should be recognized as well. As these projects proceed, workers are directly employed in the design and construction of the system, and additional employment and income is generated through purchases from Utah contractors and suppliers. Once built, the operation and maintenance of the system generates further, sustained economic activity. Depending upon the specifics of the projects, and the magnitude, distribution, and timing of associated expenditures, these massive investments clearly have a wide range of far-reaching economic influence on the region. This study evaluates the employment, population, and personal income impacts associated with a scenario that accelerates the construction program to reach completion by 2025. The Utah Transit Authority has sponsored this research project