Key Findings:
- Aging roadways cost drivers an average of $556 a year in repairs, and in some states, it's nearly $1,000.
- Rhode Island, Mississippi and West Virginia have the worst roads and bridges in the U.S.
- Idaho, North Dakota and Wyoming have the best roads and bridges.
- Over 20% of U.S. roads and 6.1% of bridges are in poor or “non-acceptable” condition.
The United States’ crumbling infrastructure is costing every driver hundreds of dollars each year. Our team at QuoteWizard analyzed new numbers from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA), and we found that deteriorating roads and bridges cost the average driver $556 every year. Even worse, if you live in California, Rhode Island or Mississippi, you’re paying almost $1,000 a year for road repairs.
The high costs are a direct result of a combination of what the FHA considers non-acceptable roads and poor bridge decks. The more non-acceptable roads and poor bridge decks a state has, the more drivers are paying. For example, In California, 35% of roads are non-acceptable and drivers pay an average of $862 per motorist in taxes and fees. In North Carolina, though, 14% of roads are non-acceptable and drivers pay only $336 per motorist.
States with the best and worst roads
To find out which states had the best and worst roads, our analysts ranked each state based on a composite score of these factors:
- Percentage of non-acceptable roads
- Square miles of poor bridge deck
- Associated but not used in the rankings is the annual cost per motorist
States are ranked 1 to 50, with 1 being the worst overall road infrastructure and 50 being the best overall road infrastructure.
| Rank | State | % non-acceptable roads | % poor bridge deck (sq. miles area) | Cost per motorist |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rhode Island | 50% | 23.0% | $823 |
| 2 | Mississippi | 27% | 4.0% | $820 |
| 3 | West Virginia | 31% | 16.1% | $723 |
| 4 | Connecticut | 34% | 10.2% | $676 |
| 5 | Maryland | 27% | 3.4% | $356 |
| 6 | Hawaii | 43% | 2.4% | $764 |
| 7 | California | 35% | 7.2% | $862 |
| 8 | Washington | 27% | 6.1% | $643 |
| 9 | Pennsylvania | 27% | 8.2% | $610 |
| 10 | Missouri | 25% | 9.0% | $699 |
| 11 | Texas | 22% | 1.1% | $682 |
| 12 | Louisiana | 25% | 9.0% | $624 |
| 13 | Indiana | 23% | 3.9% | $480 |
| 14 | Illinois | 20% | 12.3% | $586 |
| 15 | Arizona | 21% | 1.4% | $576 |
| 16 | New Mexico | 32% | 4.7% | $768 |
| 17 | Massachusetts | 25% | 11.5% | $627 |
| 18 | New Jersey | 47% | 7.4% | $703 |
| 19 | New York | 27% | 10.0% | $509 |
| 20 | Colorado | 22% | 5.2% | $637 |
| 21 | Utah | 22% | 0.8% | $694 |
| 22 | Ohio | 16% | 3.6% | $544 |
| 23 | Delaware | 16% | 5.4% | $486 |
| 24 | North Carolina | 14% | 8.4% | $336 |
| 25 | South Carolina | 18% | 6.7% | $557 |
| 26 | Nevada | 15% | 1.0% | $536 |
| 27 | Virginia | 14% | 3.7% | $430 |
| 28 | Maine | 23% | 7.4% | $529 |
| 29 | Wisconsin | 18% | 4.0% | $736 |
| 30 | Minnesota | 16% | 3.3% | $542 |
| 31 | Michigan | 21% | 7.6% | $645 |
| 32 | New Hampshire | 20% | 6.9% | $525 |
| 33 | Alaska | 17% | 7.7% | $450 |
| 34 | Arkansas | 7% | 4.5% | $543 |
| 35 | Vermont | 17% | 4.0% | $418 |
| 36 | Kansas | 12% | 2.8% | $591 |
| 37 | Tennessee | 5% | 4.2% | $194 |
| 38 | Oregon | 10% | 3.3% | $268 |
| 39 | Florida | 13% | 1.8% | $351 |
| 40 | Kentucky | 10% | 5.0% | $434 |
| 41 | Oklahoma | 7% | 5.3% | $900 |
| 42 | Alabama | 11% | 2.5% | $506 |
| 43 | Montana | 12% | 7.8% | $472 |
| 44 | South Dakota | 14% | 9.4% | $563 |
| 45 | Georgia | 7% | 2.0% | $275 |
| 46 | Nebraska | 11% | 5.3% | $466 |
| 47 | Iowa | 8% | 9.8% | $362 |
| 48 | Idaho | 4% | 5.0% | $427 |
| 49 | North Dakota | 6% | 4.6% | $479 |
| 50 | Wyoming | 5% | 7.4% | $356 |
| United States | 20% | 6.1% | $555.66 |
Cost to drive in each state
When our analysts looked at the cost of aging roads, they found two things to consider: the cost of repairing the road and the cost of repairing your car.
The table below shows how much drivers in each state are paying for road repairs. Drivers in Oklahoma, California and Rhode Island pay the most, while drivers in Georgia, Oregon and Tennessee pay the least.
| Rank | State | Cost per motorist |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma | $900 |
| 2 | California | $862 |
| 3 | Rhode Island | $823 |
| 4 | Mississippi | $820 |
| 5 | New Mexico | $768 |
| Rank | State | Cost per motorist |
|---|---|---|
| 47 | Florida | $351 |
| 48 | North Carolina | $336 |
| 49 | Georgia | $275 |
| 49 | Oregon | $268 |
| 50 | Tennessee | $194 |
What’s not included in the table above is the cost of repairing your car. On top of taxes, it’s estimated that driving on poor-condition roads costs motorists $120 billion in vehicle repairs and operating costs. According to our findings, that’s an average of $533 per driver. Infrastructure funding for repairs and maintenance
While analyzing FHA data, we found a direct correlation between states that use funds to maintain roads and states that rank well in overall road infrastructure. Meanwhile, states with poor road infrastructure had higher costs per driver and worse road conditions across the board.
| Rank | State | % of spending on road repair | Cost per motorist |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rhode Island | 2.00% | $823 |
| 2 | Mississippi | 4.00% | $820 |
| 3 | West Virginia | 19.00% | $723 |
| 4 | Connecticut | 21.00% | $676 |
| 5 | Maryland | 20.00% | $356 |
| 46 | Nebraska | 53.00% | $466 |
| 47 | Iowa | 40.00% | $362 |
| 48 | Idaho | 36.00% | $427 |
| 49 | North Dakota | 68.00% | $479 |
| 50 | Wyoming | 54.00% | $356 |
Infrastructure repair not only keeps cost per motorist down but also acts as an important tool in job creation. According to the Brookings Institution, 13,000 jobs are created for every $1 billion spent on highway infrastructure. President Joe Biden has proposed rebuilding parts of America’s infrastructure as part of his Clean Energy Plan. The plan calls for a $2 trillion dollar investment in infrastructure, transit, innovation, environmental justice and other key areas related to transportation and energy.
Methodology
States are ranked 1 to 50, with 1 being the worst overall road infrastructure and 50 being the best overall road infrastructure. Rankings are based on a composite score of the percentage of non-acceptable roads and the percentage of the state's total bridge deck area that is considered to be poor and structurally deficient. Also included in the composite score rank is the cost per motorist that is allocated towards repairing bridge and road infrastructure.