What Are the Best and Worst US States to Drive In?

States are spending record amounts on highways, with federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding pushing per-lane budgets to new highs in many states. MoneyGeek analyzed Highway Statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation to rank every state's road quality and compare capital outlay per lane mile against actual road conditions.

After accounting for traffic volume per lane mile, there's no statistical correlation between per-lane spending and road quality. States with the highest per-lane spending can still rank poorly on road quality. Several low-spending states have smoother pavement than their higher-spending counterparts. That gap has real costs for drivers, who pay hundreds of dollars a year in extra vehicle operating costs on poorly maintained roads.

MoneyGeek created a Road Roughness Index using Federal Highway Administration international roughness index (IRI) data across Interstate, arterial and collector roads in rural and urban areas. Under FHWA standards, roads with an IRI under 95 inches per mile are rated "good"; 95 to 170 is "acceptable"; above 170 is "poor."

California ranks as the most challenging state to drive in. It places third for road congestion and fifth for driving costs. Drivers pay $5 per gallon for gas, $416 a year in maintenance and $497 in annual tolls.

Louisiana ranks as the second-worst state for driving. The state recorded nearly 20 fatal crashes per 100,000 residents in 2022, the sixth-highest rate in the country, and only 71% of its roads are in acceptable condition. Maryland ranks fourth-worst overall and first for driving costs. The state carries the second-highest annual full coverage premium in the country at $1,191.

Nebraska ranks as the best state for drivers on the strength of the second-lowest car expenses in the country. Gas costs $3.47 per gallon, and annual insurance premiums rank sixth-lowest at $488. That premium is well below what top-rated national insurers charge in most states.

Nebraska also ranks ninth for infrastructure; more than 90% of its roads and bridges are in acceptable condition.

North Dakota and South Dakota have the least congested roads in the country. North Dakota ranks third overall. South Dakota ranks seventh. Commute times in both states average 20 minutes; the national average is 26.

MoneyGeek used five categories of data to rank every state for driving conditions:

• Congestion: Average morning commute times and vehicle miles traveled per lane mile (how many vehicles use each mile-long stretch of road annually)
• Cost: Gas prices per gallon, annual car maintenance costs, annual toll expenses per vehicle and average annual premiums for the cheapest full coverage auto insurance in each state
• Infrastructure: The percentage of roads and bridges in acceptable condition in each state
• Safety: Fatal crashes per 100,000 people and car thefts per 100,000 vehicles
• Weather: Fatal car crashes per 100,000 people in snowy and rainy conditions

MoneyGeek analyzed 12 metrics across five categories to rank every state: congestion, cost, infrastructure, safety and weather. Each metric was weighted by its impact on the driving experience; the weighted average produced each state's final score.

• Congestion (25%) covers time lost to traffic. Vehicle miles traveled per lane mile (how many vehicles use each mile-long stretch of road annually) draws from 2022 Federal Highway Administration data (12.5%). The Census Bureau's 2022 one-year American Community Survey supplied average commute times in minutes (12.5%).
• Cost (20%) accounts for the out-of-pocket expense of driving. Gas prices per gallon for mid-grade gas came from CollectAPI's Gas Prices API, accessed in July 2024 (5%). Annual toll costs per vehicle divided government highway spending funded by toll revenue by the number of registered vehicles per state; the source was 2021 Federal Highway Administration data. Delaware's 2021 vehicle registration came from Delaware State Police's Reports/Statistics because FHWA data showed an unexplained drop from 2020 to 2021 (5%). Annual auto insurance premiums used the cheapest full coverage option in each state from state insurance departments and Quadrant Information Services; quotes are current as of July 2024 (5%). Annual maintenance costs came from CarMD 2021 data (5%).
• Infrastructure (20%) reflects road and bridge conditions. The percentage of roads in acceptable condition uses the International Roughness Index (IRI); lower IRI values indicate smoother roads. A road is "acceptable" at an IRI of 170 or below, which includes roads rated "Good" and "Fair" in 2022 Bureau of Transportation Statistics data (15%). For bridges, the analysis counted those scoring at least 5 out of 10: a 7 or above is excellent; a 4 or below is poor. The driving surface, underlying structure and other components were assessed using 2023 Bureau of Transportation Statistics data (5%).
• Safety (25%) tracks accident and theft rates by state. The fatal car crash rate (18.75%) divided crash fatalities by population using 2022 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data. The car theft rate (6.25%) used theft-related arrests per 100,000 vehicles from the FBI's 2022 Crime Explorer.
• Weather (10%) captures fatality rates in adverse conditions. Both the rainy-weather and snowy-weather fatality rates (each per 100,000 people, weighted at 5%) came from 2021 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data.