Long appreciated by transportation planners for its construction of trails, sidewalks and bike lanes, public health professionals for allowing Americans to choose biking and walking for commuting and recreation, and local municipalities for reenergizing downtown shopping areas, the federal Transportation Enhancements (TE) program this week added yet another title its long list of accomplishments: cost effective job creator.

A study released this week by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and the Transportation Research Board found that, dollar for dollar, TE projects that were part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) allocation generated more jobs than any other form of ARRA transportation construction.

The study of ARRA spending, conducted by state and federal planning officials and a broad technical working group, not a bike/ped or trails advocacy group, found that TE projects, the great majority of which are nonmotorized transportation infrastructure such as trails, bike paths and sidewalks, generated 17.03 full-time equivalent planning and construction jobs per $1 million invested, the most in any category of transportation investment.

At the other end of the scale, road resurfacing represented the least efficient investment in terms of job creation, creating just more than half that rate of jobs per $1 million: 9.01.

It was really a case of ‘daylight second.’ The TE job creation ratio of 17.03 compares to an average of 10.55; the next most efficient job creator, pavement widening, came in at 12.69 jobs per $1 million. These figures are found on page 43 of the report.

“This study confirms what we have learned through our work in communities all over the country –trails create jobs and spark economic revitalization,” says RTC President Keith Laughlin. “As we see here, this is in part due to the proportionately greater labor requirement in their construction, but also because of their positive impact on the health and appeal of communities of all size. These findings demonstrate the importance of RTC’s commitment to protect the Transportation Enhancements program.”

Unfortunately for all Americans during this time of high unemployment, the transportation investment delivering the least bang for its buck, road resurfacing, received by far the lion’s share of those bucks – 55 percent. On the other hand, TE projects received just four percent of the ARRA spending on transportation, while delivering an employment benefit of nearly double that of road resurfacing.

The findings cast further doubt on the already tenuous position of those elected officials in Congress and the Senate who are exploring the elimination of TE program. Not only would they be ignoring the demands of citizens, businesspeople, planners and health officials seeking more flexible transportation options, but they would also be working against the interests of the millions of Americans out of work and looking for federal investment that creates job opportunities and robust economic growth.

Photo of construction on the Mountain Division Rail Trail in Maine courtesy of Jamie Gemmiti Photo