Policy Study

25th Annual Highway Report: Maintenance Disbursements per Mile

Since 2007, these per-mile disbursements have increased by about 54%, while the Consumer Price Index  (CPI) has increased about 22%.

Maintenance disbursements are the costs to perform routine upkeep, such as filling in potholes and repaving roads.

Maintenance disbursements comprise about 16.8% of total disbursements, totaling $26.55 billion in 2018, up 13.8% from 2016 ($23.33 billion), the last time this assessment was completed.

This year we measure maintenance disbursements per SHA, lane-mile, and vehicle-miles traveled per lane-mile. Last year, we measured them in lane-miles, while in prior years we used centerline-miles. The average 2018 per-mile disbursement is $15,952 (Table 8,  Maintenance Disbursements by State, 2018, Figure 3), up 33.7% from $11,929 in 2016. This increase maintains a generally steady spending trend over the last decade. Since 2007, these per-mile disbursements have increased by about 54%, while the Consumer Price Index  (CPI) has increased by about 22%.

In 2016, New Mexico, North Dakota, Mississippi, Alabama, and Arizona reported the lowest overall maintenance expenditures. New Jersey, Delaware, New York, Washington, and Alaska reported the highest overall expenditures. In terms of disbursements per lane-mile, the largest percentage shifts from 2016 to 2018 were Alabama and New Mexico with increases of 82% and 52%, respectively, and Idaho and Arkansas with decreases of 156%  and 94%, respectively.

When using SHA miles, the largest percentage shifts from 2016 to 2018 were Alabama and  Washington with increases of 458% and 300%, respectively, and Oklahoma and West Virginia, each with decreases of more than 30%. Some of the disbursements per state-controlled mile can vary widely from year to year—reflecting funding actions and project schedules.

Maintenance Disbursements Per State-Controlled Mile
2018 RankStateZ ScoreDisbursement Per SHADisbursement Per Lane MileDisbursement Per VMT
1New Mexico-2.86$4,069$989$1,782
2North Dakota-2.68$3,871$1,648$2,903
3Mississippi-2.4$10,470$4,016$2,807
4Alabama-2.25$15,424$5,595$2,370
5Arizona-2.21$22,341$4,650$2,291
6Arkansas-2.11$12,515$3,000$5,619
7Kansas-2.01$14,082$5,898$4,501
8South Carolina-1.9$9,626$4,382$6,998
9Missouri-1.69$15,090$6,541$6,667
10South Dakota-1.65$11,437$4,020$9,123
11Wisconsin-1.63$23,419$9,248$4,174
12Idaho-1.59$27,669$3,079$7,784
13Montana-1.54$11,718$3,703$10,170
14North Carolina-1.52$13,207$6,030$8,724
15Wyoming-1.47$14,253$5,672$9,210
16Ohio-1.46$27,287$9,992$4,588
17West Virginia-1.46$6,746$3,242$11,936
18Tennessee-1.42$27,979$10,094$4,789
19Iowa-1.33$24,969$9,089$6,672
20Nevada-1.32$28,024$10,534$5,348
21Kentucky-1.32$16,451$7,168$9,188
22Michigan-1.17$37,622$13,241$3,555
23Texas-1.16$25,366$10,332$7,236
24Georgia-1.08$35,471$12,820$4,842
25Nebraska-1.08$20,313$8,840$9,631
26Louisiana-0.94$25,868$10,956$8,623
27New Hampshire-0.84$28,273$12,748$8,010
28Oregon-0.65$38,350$13,160$7,918
29Utah-0.45$42,712$14,889$7,837
30Minnesota-0.23$45,558$15,700$8,844
31Illinois-0.09$51,047$18,315$7,518
32Hawaii0.19$63,537$22,413$5,521
33Maine0.33$30,145$13,890$17,026
34Colorado0.43$57,297$20,612$9,594
35Oklahoma0.5$48,803$17,951$13,158
36Virginia0.64$29,124$13,378$20,142
37Vermont0.75$43,253$18,948$15,473
38Connecticut1$74,360$25,753$8,753
39Pennsylvania1.12$45,794$19,661$17,818
40Massachusetts1.31$108,328$27,972$4,877
41Florida1.66$111,309$30,106$6,074
42California1.74$116,491$31,733$5,040
43Indiana1.83$82,730$31,004$11,299
44Maryland2.14$103,216$34,037$8,917
45Rhode Island2.7$99,506$35,068$13,679
46Alaska3.63$42,374$13,555$43,501
47Washington4.65$180,764$31,331$20,437
48New York5.38$147,572$53,190$18,017
49Delaware6.6$86,808$39,040$46,308
50New Jersey8.92$338,380$68,361$10,186
Average$50,020$15,952$9,950
View national trends and state-by-state performances by category:
overall
Overall
total-disbursements-per-mile
Total Disbursements Per Mile
capital-bridge-disbursements-per-mile
Capital & Bridge Disbursements Per Mile
maintenance-disbursements-per-mile
Maintenance Disbursements Per Mile
administrative-disbursements-per-mile
Administrative Disbursements Per Mile
rural-interstate-percent-poor-condition
Rural Interstate Pavement Condition
rural-other-principal-arterial-percent-narrow-lanes
Rural Arterial Pavement Condition
urban-interstate-percent-poor-condition
Urban Interstate Pavement Condition
rural-other-principal-arterial-percent-poor-condition
Urban Arterial Pavement Condition
urbanized-area-congestion-peak-hours-spent-in-congestion-per-auto-commuter
Urbanized Area Congestion
bridges-percent-deficient
Structurally Deficient Bridges
fatality-rate-per-100-million-vehicle-miles-of-travel
Overall Fatality Rate
fatality-rate-per-100-million-vehicle-miles-of-travel
Rural Fatality Rate
fatality-rate-per-100-million-vehicle-miles-of-travel
Urban Fatality Rate