The Impact Of Access Management On Business Vitality Along Corridors

1. The Impact Of Access Management On Business Vitality Along Corridors Presented at the 38th Annual TRB Workshop on Transportation Law Seattle, Washington July 20, 1999

2. Presentation Outline • Recap previous business vitality research • Provide background on the Iowa Access Management Research and Awareness Project • Summarize research methods used • Summarize key research results • Discuss conclusions

3. Previous Research Findings • The majority of businesses do not experience sales losses as a result of access management changes and restrictions • Access management projects are extremely effective in terms of improving safety and traffic flow • Most losses that do occur are temporary and are recovered from within one to two years • Automobile-oriented businesses are the most vulnerable to changes and restrictions in access • Projects involving medians are the most controversial among business owners • Motorists overwhelmingly support access management projects

4. Iowa Project Background • Funded through the Iowa Highway Research Board, Iowa Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration • Guided by a Task Force made up of federal government, state government, local government, and private sector members • Conducted by a multidisciplinary team from two universities

5. Project Goals • Review existing national research and current Iowa access management practices • Leverage previous research where possible • Document Iowa-specific data on safety, operational, and business vitality impacts of access management projects using an in-depth case study approach • Educate key stakeholders using a variety of media by employing the Iowa results

6. Case Study Selection • 50 possible case studies were nominated by transportation engineers and planners throughout Iowa • Criteria for selection included geographic coverage of Iowa and coverage of different types of access management issues and project types • Five business vitality case studies were selected by the Task Force to reflect a variety of communities and project types; four more case studies were analyzed in a second round • Nine total business vitality case studies

7. Iowa Case Study Locations

8. Iowa Case Study Locations

9. Methodology And Data • Retail sales tax data from the Iowa Department of Revenue and Finance, R.L. Polk city directories, and other secondary data sources • Opinion surveys of business owners and managers, motorists/business customers, and public officials conducted by the School of Business at the University of Northern Iowa • Sampling rates for business owners/managers were higher than those for other groups (motorists and public officials)

10. Original Case Study Communities * Based on 1990 Census or latest special census. ** Community is a suburb in a metropolitan area.

11. Second Round Case Study Communities * Based on 1990 Census or latest special census. ** Community is a suburb in a metropolitan area.

12. First Round Project Characteristics *AADT is the daily traffic volume estimated for an average day during the year.

13. Second Round Project Characteristics *AADT is the daily traffic volume estimated for an average day during the year.

14. First Round Community Retailing Characteristics * A pull factor at or near 1.0 indicates the community is primarily serving its own residents; a larger figure indicates it is also serving outsiders.

15. Second Round Community Retailing Characteristics * A pull factor at or near 1.0 indicates the community is primarily serving its own residents; a larger figure indicates it is also serving outsiders.

16. Five Year ComparativeBusiness Survival Rates Note: Based on a five year period bracketing project completion. For corridors, business name changes or moves are counted as failures. First round projects only.

17. Case Study Corridor Sales Tax Revenue Growth

18. Same Businesses Sales After Project Completion Source: Opinion survey of business owners and managers.

19. Businesses Reporting A Loss Of Sales After Project Completion • Nine of 162 businesses surveyed (6%) reported sales losses; these were: • Two gasoline stations (both Des Moines--MAI) • Two real estate offices (Ankeny--Median and Coralville--TWLTL) • A convenience store (Bettendorf--TWLTL) • A supermarket (Ankeny--Median) • A tanning salon (Clive--Median) • A music store (Coralville--TWLTL) • A fast food restaurant (Coralville--TWLTL) • Five of these were “auto-oriented” businesses • Five of these involved medians while four involved TWLTLs

20. Businesses Reporting Customer Complaints About Highway Access After Project Completion

21. Businesses Reporting Customer Access Complaints, By Type

22. Overall Support For Access Management Projects

23. Clive Notes • Clive: the only community where business survival rate was far lower in the corridor than in the community at large (may reflect businesses moving elsewhere in the community or new competition nearby) • Only one Clive business reported a sales decline, but half reported customer complaints about access • Clive experienced a major retail boom during the project period; the 86th St. corridor was already built-out, so the boom occurred elsewhere in Clive • Clive corridor was the third fastest growing; Clive community outpaced other communities by at least three to one

24. Des Moines and Ames Notes • Des Moines: much of project is old and it appears to have been too limited in scope and impact to gain much motorist notice or support • Businesses near intersections that were restricted by medians on the Des Moines project appear to feel they were placed at a disadvantage versus other businesses that retained unrestricted access • Des Moines is a stable market but is losing retail market share to communities like Clive and West Des Moines • Ames: project is recent and there has been a retail “boom” along it in past year (Target, Staples, movie theatres, largest restaurant in region)

25. Key Conclusions • Business failure rates in study corridors were at or below the statewide average of 10% per year and generally were lower in corridors than their surrounding communities • Average project corridor outpaced its surrounding community in terms of retail sales growth by about 20% • About 65 percent of businesses reported stable or increased sales after project completion and 75 percent reported no customer complaints about access to their business • Some individual businesses (6%) did report sales declines and customer complaints about access (28%) • About half of customer complaints about access come from “auto-oriented” businesses • Access management projects are usually supported by a great majority of motorists; business support varies more

26. Acknowledgements • Dr. Paul Chao, Dr. Pola Gupta, and graduate students, Department of Marketing, University of Northern Iowa • Dr. Tom Sanchez, Department of Community and Regional Planning, Iowa State University • Dr. Ken Stone and Scott Baumler, Economics Department, Iowa State University • Kathy Harpole and Rich Jacobs, Iowa Department of Revenue and Finance • Iowa Access Management Task Force • Tom Welch and Ian MacGillivray, Engineering Division, Iowa Department of Transportation

27. Contact David J. Plazak Center for Transportation Research and Education, ISU Research Park, Ames, IA 50010-8615 Telephone: (515) 294-8103 Fax: (515) 294-0467 E-mail: dplazak@iastate.edu URL: http://www.ctre.iastate.edu/access