As of 2024, 90% of goods are transported by truck in New York City, impacting both the health and mobility of New Yorkers. Accelerated by the rise of e-commerce, increased congestion has spurred the need for new thinking around last-mile distribution. New York City is looking to its waterways as a pathway for freight, reducing truck traffic and leading to more sustainable logistics. To support this Blue Highways strategy, New York City will need to identify the workforce and ways to train them for these new green, maritime, and tech jobs.

In partnership with Accenture, Karp Strategies is using a mix of stakeholder interviews and labor market analysis to map the existing landscape of skilled workforce while pointing to future needs if the Blue Highways strategy is fully implemented. Both data analysis and stakeholder engagement are designed to collect insight beyond just workforce availability, capturing wraparound services, such as training, child care, transportation, and housing, crucial to workforce growth. Workforce development will be necessary for a successful shift of the workforce to the emerging maritime occupations crucial to the operation of Blue Highways.

Our synthesis of the existing workforce and upcoming needs will be summarized in a final report with recommendations, which will contribute to the New York City Economic Development Corporation’s (NYCEDC) ability to effectively guide Blue Highways toward a successful future. This report will equip NYCEDC with a clear understanding of existing gaps in up-skilling, industry entry points, and worker support, allowing them to strategically support the creation of good jobs and expand career pathways for disadvantaged communities.