I wonder how many of the states with the worst roads are run by Liberals? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
America is spending more money to build, maintain, and improve the roads, and it’s paying off—give or take a few stretches of pavement and a few bridge spans. Rural interstates are shaping up, for instance, but their heavily traveled urban counterparts are getting worse. The percentage of deficient bridges has increased for the first time in 25 years, and as almost any driver will attest, congestion isn’t going away. But these trends are more than offset by good news about fatalities—sharply down year over year from 2006 to 2008 (though in 2008, 37,261 Americans died in accidents—more than double the number who died from homicides). To quantify how America’s roads and drivers are doing, we factored in the latest data for spending, congestion, road and bridge condition, and safety to see how our states rate. Here’s what you, your legislators, and your local highway officials can do to fix things and how you can stay alive while you drive.
THE RANKINGS:
