1. VERMONT
®
AGENCY OF TRANSPORTATION
Economic Impact of
Bicycling and Walking
in Vermont
Economic & Public Meeting
EPR Policy Resources, Inc. March 15, 2012
Economists, Policy and Financial Analysts via Vermont Interactive Technologies

2. Meeting Logistics
 Streaming
 The page contains a chat room (below the live
stream) which can be used to ask questions.
 VIT sites
 Brattleboro  Williston
 Middlebury  Montpelier
 Randolph Center  Newport
 Rutland  Springfield
 White River Junction
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3. Study Purpose
To estimate the annual
economic impacts of
bicycling and walking in
Vermont.
 Business
 Environment
 Real estate
 Health
 Transportation system
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4. Vermont Overview
 Population ~620,000
 2009 GDP = $24.6B
 2009 employment =
418,673 jobs
 2009 labor earnings=
$16.6B
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5. 2010 Vermont GDP by Private Industry Sector
Source: US Bureau of Economic Analysis
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6. Methodology
Bike/Ped Facility Output
Capital Investment
Economic
Input/Output Model
Visitor Spending Jobs
(REMI)
Related to Bike/Ped
Avoided
When Labor Earnings
Appropriate
Transportation
Consumer Costs State Budget Fiscal
Avoided Impact (VEGI)
Transportation Public
Costs General Description
Other Costs and
Real Estate Value Benefits
Input: Reliable
Bike/Ped Related
Input: Reliability to be determined
Businesses
Output
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7. Bicycle/Pedestrian Infrastructure/Program Investment
 2009 VTrans data
 Dedicated B/P projects like
shared use paths, bicycle
lanes, etc.
 Roadway projects that
impact B/P: bridge
sidewalks, shoulder
widening, etc.
 Program expenditures:
SRTS, Share the Road,
recreational trail guides,
etc.
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8. Bicycle/Pedestrian Infrastructure/Program Investment
Results
 $17M output
 233 jobs
 $10M in labor earnings
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9. Bicycle/Pedestrian‐Related Businesses
 Manufacturing
 Retail, including repair &
maintenance shops
 Mountain biking &
hiking trail centers
 Tour operators
 Bike clubs, trail
associations, advocacy
groups
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10. Bicycle/Pedestrian‐Related Businesses
 Manufacturing
 Retail, including repair &
maintenance shops
 Mountain biking &
hiking trail centers
 Tour operators
 Bike clubs, trail
associations, advocacy
groups
Output=$56M Jobs=1,025 Labor earnings=$26M
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11. Visitor Spending
 40 major events in 2009
 Attracted over 16,000
participants
 45,000 associated family
& friends
 Lodging, retail, food, etc.
 Over 2/3 of spending
from out‐of‐state visitors
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12. Visitor Spending
 40 major events in 2009
 Attracted over 16,000
participants
 45,000 associated family
& friends
 Lodging, retail, food, etc.
 Over 2/3 of spending
from out‐of‐state visitors
Output=$9.5M Jobs=160 Labor earnings=$4.7M
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13. State Budget Fiscal Impact
 Effect of B/P activities on
state budget = $1.57M
 $1.54M to General
Fund
 $28,600 to
Transportation Fund
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14. State Budget Fiscal Impact
 Effect of B/P activities on  FY 2009 state budget =
state budget = $1.57M $4.3B
 $1.54M to General  $1.2B of which is
Fund General Fund
 $28,600 to  $228M of which is
Transportation Fund Transportation Fund
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15. State Budget Fiscal Impact
 Effect of B/P activities on  FY 2009 state budget =
state budget = $1.57M $4.3B
 $1.54M to General  $1.2B of which is
Fund General Fund
 $28,600 to  $228M of which is
Transportation Fund Transportation Fund
 0.04% of state budget
 0.13% of General Fund
 0.01% of Transportation Fund
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16. Avoided Transportation System Costs
 Consumer: vehicle operating costs, depreciation, purchase price
 Public: pollution, water quality, noise impacts, parking, health
 Methodology:
1. Estimate amount of annual walking & biking in VT.
2009 National Household Travel Survey:
– Miles walked in VT ~68,000,000 (average)
– Miles biked in VT ~28,000,000 (average)
2. Calculate cost savings due to walking or biking instead
of driving.
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17. Avoided Transportation System Costs
 Obtained per mile unit costs for each variable
 For example, consumer cost of vehicle ownership
per mile, public cost of air pollution per mile traveled
 Applied unit costs (step 2) to miles traveled (step 1)
Avoided Auto Added Biking Added Walking
Area Net Change
Travel Costs Associated Costs Associated Costs
Urban $ (53,577,546) $ 4,295,967 $
22,914,907 $ (26,366,672)
Rural $ (52,655,360) $ 7,281,010 $
37,304,476 $ (8,069,874)
Total $
(106,232,906) $ 11,576,977 $
60,219,383 $ (34,436,546)
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18. Avoided Transportation System Costs
 Transportation system cost savings: based on assumption
that all walking/biking trips replace automobile trips
 However, trip might not happen if mode is unavailable
 reduced accessibility.
 Assumes trip distance is equivalent regardless of mode.
 Travel time unit cost for auto does not include time for
parking and walking to destination.
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19. Effect of Walkability on Real Estate
 Statistical model of all houses sold in VT, closing price,
walkability score, job density & median household income
 Estimated effect of walkability score on property value where
job density is greater than 110 jobs/sq.mi. (urban):
 Results for rural areas determined to be unreliable
 Preliminary estimate of walkability impact on property in VT
is $350M
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20. Results
Output
Input
(results for one typical year)
Bike/Ped Facility
Jobs
Capital Investment
Economic
Bike/Ped Related Input/Output Model Labor Earnings
Businesses (REMI)
Visitor Spending
Output
Related to Bike/Ped
Considered but not
included in model State Budget
Avoided Transportation Fiscal Impact
Consumer Costs
Avoided Transportation
Public Costs
Real Estate Value
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21. Results
Output
Input
(results for one typical year)
Bike/Ped Facility Jobs
Capital Investment 1,418
Economic Labor Earnings
Bike/Ped Related Input/Output Model $41M
Businesses (REMI)
Output
Visitor Spending $83M
Related to Bike/Ped
Considered but not State Budget
included in model Fiscal Impact
Avoided Transportation
$1.6M
$43M
Consumer Costs
Avoided Transportation
$42M
Public Costs
Real Estate Value $350M
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22. Conclusions
Total Output = $82.7M  Bicycle/pedestrian
oriented activities
contribute less than
Infrastructure
expenditures
1% to the state’s
$15.334M Program economy.
expenditures
$1.622M
 Avoided
Events
$9.476M Transportation
Businesses
System Costs: $84M
$56.312M
 Real Estate Impact:
$350M
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23. Conclusions
 $1M in infrastructure
spending generates
~23 jobs
 $1M in program
spending generates
~32 jobs
 Bike/ped businesses
are very seasonal
 Bike/ped tourism
represents <1% of
total visitor
expenditures in VT Photo: Local Motion
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24. Conclusions
 Transportation system
cost savings estimates
require:
– A better unit cost for
travel time
– A better understanding
of how car trips are
replaced by bike/walk
trips (distance and ratio)
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25. Conclusions
 A methodology for rural
areas is needed to
improve the estimate of
walkability impacts to
property values.
 Future research could
consider the impact on
wealth effects.
Photo: Local Motion 25

26. Conclusions
Comment period ends
Thursday, March 29th, 2012
Comments can be sent to:
vteconbp@rsginc.com
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