Ranking of highway costs, conditions places Wisconsin 26th nationally

Wisconsin slipped to the middle of the pack in a national ranking of the cost-effectiveness and condition of the state’s highway system by the Reason Foundation, a libertarian think tank.

Wisconsin fell to 26th nationally from 22nd last year in Reason’s annual ranking of highway systems throughout the country. Wisconsin fared better than Illinois, Michigan and Indiana, but came in behind Minnesota, at 18th, and Iowa, at 22nd.

Wisconsin had the 19th largest highway system in the country, based on its number of state-controlled highway miles. Meanwhile, Wisconsin spends $85,343 for each mile of its state-controlled roads, putting it at 29th in the rankings by that measure. In other words, 21 other states spend more per mile on their highways.

The report notes that the state’s place in the rankings was dragged down by pavement quality. Wisconsin ranked 41st for both the quality of its rural arterial pavement and its urban pavement conditions.

“To improve in the rankings, Wisconsin needs to improve its arterial pavement quality. Wisconsin ranks in the bottom 10 in both arterial pavement quality rankings,” said Baruch Feigenbaum, lead author of the report and senior managing director of transportation policy at Reason. “Wisconsin might need to devote additional resources to its pavement quality. If Wisconsin improves its pavement quality even somewhat, it will move into the top 20 in the rankings.”

The Reason report evaluated each state on 13 measurements of highway system cost and conditions, including the quality of pavement and bridges, the frequency of traffic deaths and dollars spent per mile. The organization mostly used data from 2019, although it took into account traffic data in 2020 that showed a drop in travel amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reason ranked Wisconsin 11th for its fatality rate, 15th for traffic congestion, 28th for having structurally deficient bridges, 31st for the condition of the pavement on its urban interstates and 34th for the condition of its rural interstates. Wisconsin drivers also spend 6.25 hours a year on average stuck in traffic, placing the state 15th nationally. Follow @natebeck9