Benefits of I-73 / I-74 / I-75: Job Creation
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) estimates 42,000 jobs are created for every $1 billion invested in highway construction. To specifically evaluate the number of jobs created by construction of Interstate 73, Chmura Economics and Analytics, a profesional economics based in Richmond, VA has performed a full I-73 economic impact statement for three states: Virginia, West Virgina and South Carolina.
Chmura estimates:
- 22,347 jobs created in South Carolina
- 5,303 jobs created in Virginia
- 2,020 jobs created in West Virginia
An additional analysis was performed by Dr. Don Schunk, an economist formerly with Coastal Carolina University. Dr. Schunk evaluated the impact of construction of I-73 in South Carolina. He estimates that construction activities will add 7,720 jobs each year for a 5-year construction process.
I-73 is crucial for this region within South Carolina. Unemployment rates within the region are typically above the state and national averages (see the comparison below), indicating a larger-than-average workforce within the I-73 corridor:
| January 2011 Unemployment % |
February 2011 Unemployment % |
|||||
| State | Corridor |
State |
Nat'l 9.0% |
Corridor | State | Nat'l 8.9% |
| Michigan | 14.2% | 11.3% | 13.9% | 11.0% | ||
| Ohio | 9.3% | 10.1% | 8.9% | 9.8% | ||
| W. Virginia | 10.6% | 10.3% | 10.6% | 10.2% | ||
| Virginia | 8.1% | 6.9% | 7.5% | 6.6% | ||
| N. Carolina | 11.1% | 10.4% | 10.7% | 10.1% | ||
| S. Carolina | 14.4%M | 10.5% | 13.9% | 10.3% | ||
| Total Corridor | 12.0% | 9.9% | 11.7% | 9.6% | ||
- Corridor 2010 Unemployment Statistics
- Corridor 2009 Unemployment Statistics
- Corridor 2008 Unemployment Statistics
Current unemployment numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.