Capital & Bridge Disbursements Per Mile — 23rd Annual Highway Report

Capital and Bridge Disbursements Per State-Controlled Mile
2017 Annual Highway Report

Capital and bridge disbursements are the costs to build new, and widen existing, highways and bridges. Capital and bridge disbursements for state-owned roads make up 51.6% of total disbursements, totaling $74.90 billion in 2015, about 8.8% more than was spent in 2013 ($68.86 billion), the last time this assessment was completed.

On a per-mile basis, capital and bridge disbursements increased about 8.9%, from $84,494 per mile in 2013 to $91,992 per mile in 2015 (Table 7, Capital and Bridge Disbursements per State-Controlled Mile, 2015). This increase continues a generally upward trend in spending over the last decade. Since 2006, these per-mile disbursements have increased over 37%, while the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has increased about 18%.

In 2015, South Carolina, West Virginia, Missouri and North Carolina reported the lowest per-mile capital and bridge expenditures. New Jersey, Florida, Hawaii and Massachusetts reported the highest per-mile expenditures. The states with the largest percentage shifts from 2013 to 2015 were Hawaii and New York (which increased per-mile expenditures by more than 49%) and Washington and South Dakota (which decreased per-mile expenditures by more than 34%). Some of the disbursements per state-controlled mile can vary widely from year to year—reflecting funding actions and project schedules.

Capital and Bridge Disbursements Per State-Controlled Mile