Despite spending $679,296 per mile on road maintenance and improvements, California ranked fourth worst in a new study of highway performance and efficiency.
The latest ranking in the annual report by the Reason Foundation, a Los Angeles-based think tank, puts the Golden State in the bottom 10 every year since 2000. The study is based on spending and performance data from 2009 submitted by state highway agencies to the federal government.
Only Alaska, Rhode Island and Hawaii fared worse. On the other end, North Dakota had the best roads, trailed by Kansas and Wyoming.
“California’s roads are in poor condition despite a significant increase (24 percent more) in per-mile highway expenditures, making total per-mile spending in California 4.7 times the national average,” the report states.
Its bright spots were ranking 12th in number of deficient bridges and 14th in fatality rate.
The report notes that California’s highway system is the 11th largest in the U.S. with 18,260 miles.
