The Economic Value of Hillsborough County’s Trails
The Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council partnered with the Hillsborough TPO to measure what multi-use trails contribute to the local economy. The study looks at the county’s roughly 48 miles of existing SUN Trail and greenway facilities and estimates their impact on visitor spending, property values, household costs, and jobs.
Key Findings
- Nearly $10 million in annual economic output from trail-related visitor spending, supporting 79 jobs, $3.4 million in wages, and $1.4 million in tax revenue
- $8.5 million a year in household transportation savings if just 5% of residents replace one short weekly car trip with a walk or bike ride
- 57,660 homes sit within a quarter mile of a trail, representing $23.1 billion in taxable value
- 440 construction job-years from building 25 more miles of trais
- Adding about 25 miles would create a 73-mile network comparable to the Pinellas Trail. At that scale, annual output could exceed $21 million, supporting 171 jobs and $3.1 million in tax revenue.
- Every $10 million spent supports about 117 construction job-years, compared to 70 for road widening and 50 for highway expansion.
The biggest opportunity isn’t adding miles alone. It’s closing gaps and connecting trails to neighborhoods, jobs, and business districts so they work as everyday transportation, not just recreation.
The analysis uses IMPLAN and REMI economic models, GIS parcel data, and Pinellas Trail usage as a benchmark. Results are planning-level estimates intended to inform transportation and investment decisions.
Contact Sarah Vitale, AICP, Director of Civic Technology, at sarah@tbrpc.org or (727) 570-5151 ext. 27.
