Say It Ain't So - California Tops the List of Worst Roads in the Nation

SACRAMENTO, Calif.--Dec. 27, 2001--California's rutted, cracked and neglected roads now rank at the bottom of all 50 states in roadway quality and per capita dollars being spent to improve them, according to a new study from Transportation California.

Last year the state's roads were third worst in the nation. With 37 percent of 168,000 miles of state and local roads rated poor, the state has fallen to dead last on the list, according to The Road Information Program, which prepared the study. Other states in the bottom five were Louisiana, 27 percent; Massachusetts, 25 percent; and New Jersey and Missouri, 21 percent.

``A generation of underinvestment in California's streets, highways, overpasses and bridges has resulted in a shameful deterioration of what once was a showcase transportation network,'' said Larry Fisher, executive director of Transportation California, the state's leading transportation advocacy and public education organization.

``The $6.8 billion investment that was begun with Governor Davis's Traffic Congestion Relief Program last year is an important first step in reversing the under-investment of the past several decades,'' he said.

Travel in California increased 97 percent between 1980 and 2000, and population increased 42 percent in the same period. Yet California invested less per person in transportation than any state. According to the report, this underinvestment has had an adverse impact on travel, safety and drivers' pocketbooks.

California ranks first nationally in extra vehicle operating costs that motorists pay when driving on congested, rutted roads. California motorists collectively pay $12 billion, or $558 individually, in extra vehicle operating costs annually as a result of driving on roads in poor, mediocre and fair condition. Reducing the percentage of poor and mediocre roads to 20 percent, respectively, would save the average motorist $215 annually, and all California drivers $4.7 billion.

``Failing to increase our investment in transportation will only cost us more in the long run,'' Fisher said. Reconstruction costs four to five times more than repair and maintenance. The study notes that mediocre roads deteriorate faster than good roads, increasing the urgency of repair needs and the ultimate cost of repairing them. More than a third of the state's roads are now in mediocre shape.

In addition, three out of 10 of the state's overpasses and bridges have deficiencies that must be addressed. The California Transportation Commission estimates that the state's unfunded transportation needs top $115 billion.

``Our roads are wearing out faster than we can fix them at current levels of funding,'' Fisher said. ``An important first step in reversing this trend would be the passage of Prop. 42 on the March ballot. This will earmark the sales tax on gasoline for transportation -- dedicating more than a billion dollars per year for roads, bridges and transit.''

Report: For a complete copy of ``The High Cost of Bad Roads,'' go to www.transportationca.com (see Recent News) or www.tripnet.org.