Transportation investment is integrally linked with economic development. Cities, metropolitan areas, and states regularly plan and develop transportation projects – across multiple modes – intended to attract new businesses to specific sites and/or support the growth of existing businesses in or near their current sites. Understanding the nature and amount of economic benefits accruing from these transportation investments in a credible and defensible manner, however, is challenging.
For the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), EDR Group is leading a project to provide transportation planners and decision-makers with insights, guidance, and information on how transportation system investments affect site selection decisions of businesses and private land developers. In the form of a “primer” or guidebook, EDR Group will provide expert insights to and “real-world” examples of business decision-making and transportation project investment that facilitate an understanding of the various policy and planning levers available to influence site selection.