Worst Roads in America? Here's Where You Rank!
It is to laugh. California, where I live, with some of the best weather in the nation, ranks 5 out of 50 for the worst roads in the country. And Californians pay the most, a state tax of 69.8 cents per gallon. So where is all that revenue going? You gotta ask Sacramento because it's obviously not going into road repair!
I recently received an email with state-by-state figures on "worst roads."
These states have the worst roads in the nation:
A new study has revealed the states with the highest percentage of roads classified as “unacceptable” in the United States.
The study, by cash for cars service Junk Car Reaper, analyzed road condition data from 2012 to 2022 from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, specifically looking at the total miles within each state that are deemed “unacceptable” according to the International Roughness Index (IRI).
In first place is Rhode Island, where almost half of the roads within the state are in an unacceptable condition—a figure that works out to 48% of all roads within the state, or 568 of a total of 1,182 miles.
Notably, Rhode Island has the lowest total mileage of roads in unacceptable condition, but as a percentage, the figure firmly cements Rhode Island’s status as the state with the worst roads in the nation.
In second place is New Jersey, with 45.69% of its roads in an unacceptable state, totaling 1,767 miles out of 3,868 miles overall.
In third place is Hawaii, where 40.72% of roads are considered unacceptable, totaling 629 miles out of 1,546 miles in the state. Despite having the second-lowest total mileage of roads in unacceptable condition, only behind Rhode Island, when ranked by percentage of total roads, Hawaii is firmly in third.
In fourth place is Connecticut, where 40.38% of the roads are unacceptable, with 2,561 miles out of a total of 6,343 miles in the state.
In fifth place is California, which has 38.84% of its roads in an unacceptable condition, covering 7,664 miles out of a total of 19,736 miles. California has the highest mileage of roads in unacceptable condition of any state in the top 10, followed by Pennsylvania, with 7,329 miles in unacceptable condition.
Washington ranks sixth with 29.55% of its roads deemed unacceptable, totaling 5,695 out of 19,272 miles.
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In seventh is New Mexico, where 28.96% of roads are in unacceptable condition, with 3,482 out of 12,021 miles affected.
Eighth place goes to Massachusetts, with 28.68% of roads in the state classified as unacceptable, or 1,528 out of 5,328 miles.
Ninth is Mississippi, where 27.86% of roads are unacceptable, totaling 6,068 miles out of 21,783 miles.
Finally, Pennsylvania takes tenth place, with 27.65% of roads in the state classified as in unacceptable condition, amounting to 7,329 miles out of 26,506 miles.
Interestingly, just over a fifth of the nation’s roads are in “unacceptable” condition (20.13%)—working out to a staggering 158,253 miles’ worth of unacceptable roads throughout the United States.
Idaho was found to have the best-maintained roads of any state, with just 5.52% of the state’s roads classified as “unacceptable” by IRI standards—working out to just 249 miles of a total of 4,512 miles of roads within the state.
Todd Bialaszewski, of Junk Car Reaper, commented on the findings, saying,
“This poses serious implications not only for day-to-day travel but also for broader economic and safety factors. Addressing this issue will require a comprehensive approach, prioritizing sustained investment in infrastructure improvements, preventive maintenance, and modern repair techniques.
“In addition to targeted investments, fostering collaboration between state governments, local agencies, and private sector partners can accelerate progress. By pooling resources, sharing expertise, and implementing data-driven strategies, organizations can prioritize the most critical repairs and optimize maintenance schedules.”
For states numbered 11-50 I direct you to the sources and methodology of this study:
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President of Operations - Junk Car Medics
4 个月I was shocked to see California near the top!! And that New York wasn't in the top 10. Thanks for the share!
Medical Physicist at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital
4 个月I am happy to see PA improved! When we lived in PA in the 90s the roads there were rated the worst in the country by a trucking indistry group. This got some local attention with work on US 220, when they repaved over a deer carcass instead of removing it.