26th Annual Highway Report: Capital-Bridge Disbursements Per Mile

Capital and bridge disbursements are the costs to build new, and widen existing, highways and bridges. Capital and bridge disbursements for state-owned roads equal 50% of total disbursements, totaling $78.87 billion in 2019, about 2.2% more than was spent in 2018 ($77.15 billion), the last time this assessment was completed.

This year, we measure capital and bridge disbursements per lane- mile. Last year, we measured capital and bridge disbursements per centerline-mile, lane-mile, and vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) per lane-mile. The average 2019 lane- mile disbursement is $41,850, a 2.1% increase from 2018’s

$40,995 (Table 7, Capital and Bridge Disbursements by State, 2018, Figure 2.) This follows a generally steady increased spending trend over the past decade. Since 2007, these per- mile disbursements have increased about 23%, similar to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which has increased about 23%.

In 2019, Missouri, Virginia, West Virginia, South Dakota, and New Mexico reported the lowest capital and bridge expenditures. New Jersey, Florida, Rhode Island, New York, and Maryland reported the highest expenditures. In terms of disbursements per lane-mile, the largest percentage shifts from 2018 to 2019 were Idaho, Washington, and Arizona (which increased per lane-mile expenditures by 414%, 128%, and 103%, respectively) and West Virginia, Virginia, and Massachusetts (which decreased per lane-mile expenditures by 51%, 40%, and 39%). Some of the disbursements per state-controlled lane-mile can vary widely from year to year reflecting funding actions and project schedules.

Capital and Bridge Disbursements Per State-Controlled Mile