Checking In on Infrastructure

Thanks partly to trillions in federal investment under President Biden, infrastructure has become a bit of a hot topic—so where do American roads and bridges stand now? (Construction Physics)

A new analysis by Institute for Progress fellow Brian Potter: Interstates are in pretty good shape, but roads, especially in urban areas, could use some work.

• 80%+ of interstate mileage is rated "good" or "very good," with only 3% rated "poor" or worse, according to the International Roughness Index, the most widely used measurement of road quality.

• Only 40% of non-interstate roads are rated "good" or better, and 20% are "poor" or worse, with urban roads generally in worse condition than rural ones.

(In the chart below, lower numbers indicate higher quality.)

Zoom in: Over 60% of roads in San Francisco and Los Angeles are poor, compared to less than 10% in Atlanta and Minneapolis.

Bridges: Since 2000, the share of U.S. bridges in “poor” condition has fallen from 15% to less than 7%.

Spending: The federal government spent $44.8 billion on infrastructure in 2023 and transferred an additional $81.5 billion to states.

• In 2021, state and local governments spent $218.5 billion, making up 56% of all transportation and infrastructure spending.