Seattle is routinely listed as one of the most and cities in the nation. The city government has committed to , which aims to completely eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2030, and embarked on a slew of infrastructure projects: , and .听
Such safety projects sometimes meet opposition from local business owners, who worry that reduced parking and disruption to regular traffic flow will hurt their bottom line.听听
New research from the 91探花 suggests those worries are unfounded. , an analysis of seven safety projects across Seattle found they had no negative impact on the annual revenues of nearby businesses for three years after construction began. The results could help city officials gather support from local business owners and remove a barrier to fulfilling Seattle鈥檚 Vision Zero pledge.听
“Some business owners may be concerned that Vision Zero pedestrian safety projects lead to a trade-off between safety and economic viability. Our research found there is no economic harm in improving safety, and such projects offer the health benefits of reducing injuries,鈥� said study co-author , a 91探花affiliate professor of environmental and occupational health sciences and of urban planning.听
The study was led by 91探花alumnus , who completed the research for concurrent master鈥檚 degrees in public health and urban planning and now works at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.听听
Researchers identified seven road safety projects of varying types, from the addition of bike lanes and crosswalks to speed limit adjustments and the removal of traffic lanes. The project sites were in six of Seattle鈥檚 seven council districts 鈥� they could not find a suitable project in West Seattle 鈥� and were all initiated between 2006 and 2014. All seven sites were commercially zoned and close to similar commercial zones that remained unchanged.听
Using revenue data that each Washington business submits to the state, researchers established a baseline of taxable sales for businesses adjacent to each safety project, as well as for businesses in the nearby comparison areas. Researchers included only businesses that the state Department of Revenue database identified as 鈥渞etail trade,鈥� 鈥渁ccommodation and food services,鈥� and 鈥渙ther services.鈥� They excluded businesses from sectors that are less reliant on street-level activity, like manufacturing or construction.听
In the three years after each safety intervention, researchers found no significant difference in the year-over-year change in revenue of the businesses in the intervention and comparison sites. On average, taxable sales increased in both the intervention and comparison sites over time, and at largely the same rate.听听
鈥淚f there had been a major impact of taking away parking spaces or disrupting traffic leading to a loss of business, you would expect sales to go down in places that had the interventions and not go down in the comparison sites,鈥� Dannenberg said. 鈥淚n fact, they stayed about the same, within statistical range. The sales data do not suggest any economic harm occurred, in fact there were a few instances where the safety interventions might have even helped sales.”听
The study has some limitations. For example, researchers did not examine whether certain types of businesses might have been affected differently than others, or how factors like the supply of nearby parking spots unaffected by construction might have impacted the results.听
Dannenberg, who serves on the Seattle planning commission, believes this work may help facilitate communication between city planners and business interests.听听
鈥淎 walkable environment generally encourages business,鈥� Dannenberg said. 鈥淚 think this work has听 implications that will be useful to policy makers who work on pedestrian safety and livable community issues.鈥�听
Other co-authors are Jessica Acolin and Paul Fishman of the Department of Health Systems and Population Health in the 91探花School of Public Health.听
For more information, contact Dannenberg at adannen@uw.edu.听