Do Urban Rail Infrastructure Help Employment and Wages Growth? - Evidence from Seattle and Denver Light Rail Projects

We investigate the impact of light rail projects on the counties they serve through two economic outcomes – growth in employment and wages. In the study, we conduct investigation for relative growth rates in employment and wages in Seattle and Denver metro area counties that are served by Sound Transit and RTD FasTrack light rail projects. Data from surveys of both households and establishments to corroborate their results with traditional difference-in-differences and matching methods involved. We find no statistically significant evidence to indicate that these light rail projects may have led to economic outcomes of higher relative growth rates in employment or wages. These results may point to reasons for light rail projects spurring growth rates in employment and wages being dependent on extent and quality of services provided, not merely through connections that this paper investigates