Skip to main content

Public transportation has paid off for Salt Lake City region, study shows

A public transportation technology partnership between Salt Lake City and Siemens in the US has resulted in 1,300 new jobs that have spurred an estimated $225 million in value to the local economy, according to a study conducted by the Economic Development Research Group, a Boston-based research company Siemens hired to assess the economic impact of the project. Since 1996, Siemens has manufactured and delivered 117 light rail vehicles for UTA’s TRAX light rail streetcar lines. The company is building t
June 25, 2015 Read time: 3 mins
A public transportation technology partnership between Salt Lake City and 189 Siemens in the US has resulted in 1,300 new jobs that have spurred an estimated $225 million in value to the local economy, according to a study conducted by the Economic Development Research Group, a Boston-based research company Siemens hired to assess the economic impact of the project.

Since 1996, Siemens has manufactured and delivered 117 light rail vehicles for UTA’s TRAX light rail streetcar lines. The company is building the customised light rail vehicles out of its 800-person rail manufacturing hub in Sacramento, California. Results indicate that the light rail extension reduced residents’ dependence on private vehicles and spurred high-density development, thereby decreasing the region’s carbon footprint, improving local air quality, and proactively managing traffic congestion.

The study looked beyond well-documented short-term spending effects to also examine long-term economic benefits like spatial efficiency, private sector investment, and cost savings that are reinvested elsewhere. For instance, major companies including Adobe, eBay, Goldman Sachs, Overstock.com, and Workday have made office location decisions based, in part, by proximity to the TRAX and FrontRunner stations.

“The Siemens cars that form the backbone of our TRAX light rail system and recently opened S-Line Streetcar here in Salt Lake City are reliably getting tens of thousands of our residents where they need to go every day,” said Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker. “Siemens technology is integral in our efforts to get cars off the roads, address our local air quality challenges and continue to improve the liveability, and sustainability, of our community.”

"Siemens has been a great partner for our TRAX light rail system," said UTA president and CEO Michael Allegra. "TRAX has been reliable and a success by any measure with some of the highest ridership numbers in the entire UTA system. The economic development along our lines has been steady and a huge benefit to the entire community."

"Utah's economy is leading the nation and this reports shows part of our success can be attributed to our commitment to transportation investment as a state," said Abby Albrecht, director of Utah Transportation Coalition. "As we look to the future, building on these investments wisely will ensure we continue to economically prosper."

“We’re proud that our long-standing technology partnership with the 5583 Utah Transit Authority has resulted not only in economic growth but job creation throughout the Salt Lake City region,” said Michael Cahill, president of Siemens Rolling Stock. “Rail projects like these are proof that when you spend on infrastructure, you get a multiplier effect that boosts productivity and attractiveness for investment.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • GridMatrix goes back to the future in New York City
    September 25, 2023
    Legacy traffic management infrastructure doesn’t have to be a marker of the past: software upgrades can bring it into the present in a cost-effective and timely way, says Gordon Feller
  • Asian high speed rail link tender expected late 2014
    July 29, 2013
    Officially launched in February 2013, tenders for the high-speed rail link project between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore will be received towards the end of 2014, Mohd Nur Kamal, the CEO of Malaysia's Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) has announced. Although the two governments continue to work on technical details and feasibility studies, various parties have already voiced an interest. The railway, which will connect the two countries at speeds exceeding 300 km/h, will reduce the journey time between t
  • Insight into China's smart cities initiatives
    April 25, 2013
    Schneider Electric, which has been playing an active role in smart transportation systems in China since 1990, provides an insight into smart city initiatives in the country. Today, most cities across the world are facing unprecedented growth, which questions the viability of the current development model. They are immersed in a competition with each other, both domestically and internationally, in terms of investments, jobs and talents. Cities need to become more attractive and intelligent by becoming more
  • Connected citizens boosts Boston’s traffic management
    March 30, 2017
    Data-derived traffic management is starting to show benefits as David Crawford discovers. The city of Boston has been facing growing congestion problems in its Seaport regeneration district, with the rate of commercial and residential growth threatening to overtake the capacity of the road network to respond.