Florida among states with the best roads in America
(MoneyGeek) - State and local governments spend billions each year on road maintenance and operations, but does it amount to better roads for taxpayers?
MoneyGeek analyzed data from the
Our findings suggest that taxpayers are not necessarily getting their money's worth. At best, they are getting just enough road investment to maintain the current condition of roads, but not enough to improve them. The analysis found:
- About 1 in 10 U.S. roads are in poor condition, but urban roads are even worse: 1 in 5 are in poor condition.
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Comparing rough roads and infrastructure spending by state
MoneyGeek analyzed overall road quality and the investment levels per lane mile in every state and found that more spending on roads did not necessarily lead to better road quality.
The road roughness index is the weighted average value of the observed measurements of the international roughness index (IRI) for the state. The higher the score, the more rough the road is. The
For example,
These 10 states have the roughest roads in America
10.
Average Road Roughness Score (higher = worse): 123
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 26%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 44%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
9.
Average Road Roughness Score: 128
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 24%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 38%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
8.
Average Road Roughness Score: 128
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 26%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 36%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
7.
Average Road Roughness Score: 131
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 31%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 37%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
6.
Average Road Roughness Score: 134
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 25%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 28%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
5.
Average Road Roughness Score: 137
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 30%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 34%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
4.
Average Road Roughness Score: 139
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 28%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 25%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
3.
Average Road Roughness Score: 141
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 33%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 33%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
2.
Average Road Roughness Score: 149
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 41%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 27%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
1.
Average Road Roughness Score: 160
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 44%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 22%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
5 states with the best roads
Every state in the nation has some bad and good roads. The following five states have the best road conditions on average, led by
5.
Average Road Roughness Score: 82
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 4%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 68%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
4.
Average Road Roughness Score: 79
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 5%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 71%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
3.
Average Road Roughness Score: 77
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 5%
% of Roads in Good Condition:72%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
2.
Average Road Roughness Score: 74
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 5%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 75%
Total Highway Spend:
Spend Per Lane Mile:
1.
Average Road Roughness Score: 71.9
% of Roads in Poor Condition: 7%
% of Roads in Good Condition: 74%
Total Highway Spend:
Who pays for roads?
This analysis of all 50 states shows that states generally spend proportionately to the vehicle miles traveled; however, there are exceptions.
Regardless of how much money they spend on road conditions, data suggests that states are using available funds to maintain — not fix or improve — crumbling roads. Additionally, the analysis found that many of the most tax-friendly states in the
Three-quarters of spending to maintain and fix roads and highways comes from state and local governments. According to the
Through the
Why are roads in good repair important?
Quality roads and highways are essential to the broader
For the consumer, poor road conditions translate directly into higher car repair and maintenance costs. They may even have a harder time finding cheap car insurance due to increased claims. Drivers in states with rough road conditions that don't want to be left paying for damage due to potholes should purchase full coverage car insurance. Full coverage includes comprehensive and collision insurance which is the provision that insures damages to your car, unlike liability-only insurance which will only cover damages you owe to others in accidents where you are at fault. Adding comprehensive and collision insurance can cost drivers hundreds more every year, but there are affordable full coverage options and the coverage you get is worth it.
Methodology
MoneyGeek determined how states rank on the condition of their urban and suburban roads and their highway infrastructure spending by comparing the roughness measure of each state's urban and suburban highways and state and local (municipal and county) government expenditures on their highway system. We used the metrics below to establish final scores and rankings:
- Road Roughness Index: We developed a composite roughness score of all major urban roadways in each state by weighting each category of measured pavement roughness and aggregating this information across the entire state system.
- Percentage Poor vs. Good Condition: We designated each category of measured pavement roughness into larger groupings and compared the number of lane miles across the state by groupings of higher and lower pavement roughness.
Capital Outlays per Lane Mile: This value is calculated as the total state expenditure on capital outlays for highways divided by the total lane miles in each state's functional road system.
- Total Highway Spend: This value is calculated as the total state expenditure on both capital outlays and other expenditures for highways.
Sources
U.S.
U.S.
U.S.
This story originally appeared on MoneyGeek and has been independently reviewed to meet journalistic standards.
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