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 49.9% of total disbursements, totaling $78.87 billion in 2020—the same as what was spent in 2019.
Last year we measured capital and bridge disbursements per lane-mile. For 2018, we measured capital and bridge disbursements per centerline-mile, lane-mile, and vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) per lane-mile. In this analysis for 2020, we measure disbursements per lane adjusted for urbanization. For this process, we take the disbursement per lane-mile and divide it by the expected disbursement per lanemile to get a ratio. The average 2020 lane-mile disbursement is $41,783, a 0.2% decrease from 2019’s $41,850 (Table 7, Capital and Bridge Disbursements by State, 2020, Figure 2). This very small decrease bucks a decade-long trend of steady increases in spending. Since 2007, total capital and bridge disbursements have increased about 26.1%, similar to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which has increased about 27.4%.
In 2020, Virginia, Missouri, Massachusetts, West Virginia, and South Carolina reported the lowest capital and bridge expenditure ratios, after adjusting for urbanization. Washington, Alaska, Idaho, New York, and Arizona reported the highest expenditure ratios. The 2020 capital and bridge disbursements ratios by state cannot be compared to previous years, as the methodology has changed. 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
| 2020 Rank | State | Disbursement Per Lane-Mile | Expected Disbursement per Lane-Mile | Adjusted Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virginia | $11,862 | $42,748 | 0.28 |
| 2 | Missouri | $10,364 | $30,406 | 0.34 |
| 3 | Massachusetts | $91,830 | $207,833 | 0.44 |
| 4 | West Virginia | $12,820 | $28,193 | 0.45 |
| 5 | South Carolina | $21,016 | $45,109 | 0.47 |
| 6 | Louisiana | $22,084 | $44,370 | 0.5 |
| 7 | New Mexico | $14,794 | $26,872 | 0.55 |
| 8 | Georgia | $31,611 | $56,314 | 0.56 |
| 9 | Tennessee | $31,058 | $52,898 | 0.59 |
| 10 | Delaware | $49,325 | $82,074 | 0.6 |
| 11 | North Carolina | $27,897 | $44,381 | 0.63 |
| 12 | Connecticut | $94,435 | $147,085 | 0.64 |
| 13 | Kansas | $18,545 | $27,958 | 0.66 |
| 14 | Kentucky | $20,742 | $30,817 | 0.67 |
| 15 | Arkansas | $24,155 | $35,260 | 0.69 |
| 16 | Ohio | $39,661 | $56,700 | 0.7 |
| 17 | Mississippi | $25,031 | $33,554 | 0.75 |
| 18 | South Dakota | $13,696 | $18,126 | 0.76 |
| 19 | New Hampshire | $32,313 | $37,664 | 0.86 |
| 20 | Michigan | $53,110 | $60,894 | 0.87 |
| 21 | Pennsylvania | $43,217 | $47,341 | 0.91 |
| 22 | Rhode Island | $124,081 | $132,030 | 0.94 |
| 23 | Maine | $27,840 | $29,198 | 0.95 |
| 24 | Nebraska | $21,452 | $22,276 | 0.96 |
| 25 | Hawaii | $98,120 | $99,817 | 0.98 |
| 26 | Wyoming | $23,697 | $23,913 | 0.99 |
| 27 | Alabama | $46,715 | $45,858 | 1.02 |
| 28 | Colorado | $45,663 | $43,457 | 1.05 |
| 29 | Wisconsin | $46,455 | $43,833 | 1.06 |
| 30 | Maryland | $101,839 | $94,042 | 1.08 |
| 31 | Texas | $48,485 | $44,236 | 1.1 |
| 32 | Montana | $20,961 | $19,047 | 1.1 |
| 33 | Minnesota | $41,049 | $36,827 | 1.11 |
| 34 | Illinois | $74,606 | $63,747 | 1.17 |
| 35 | Vermont | $32,497 | $26,905 | 1.21 |
| 36 | California | $86,801 | $71,250 | 1.22 |
| 37 | Indiana | $54,635 | $44,368 | 1.23 |
| 38 | North Dakota | $21,820 | $17,458 | 1.25 |
| 39 | Oregon | $50,073 | $38,506 | 1.3 |
| 40 | Utah | $58,599 | $45,052 | 1.3 |
| 41 | Oklahoma | $44,728 | $33,958 | 1.32 |
| 42 | Iowa | $44,132 | $33,116 | 1.33 |
| 43 | Florida | $144,620 | $108,485 | 1.33 |
| 44 | Nevada | $51,121 | $37,692 | 1.36 |
| 45 | New Jersey | $344,386 | $225,160 | 1.53 |
| 46 | Arizona | $68,623 | $44,429 | 1.54 |
| 47 | New York | $103,205 | $65,611 | 1.57 |
| 48 | Idaho | $49,130 | $26,779 | 1.83 |
| 49 | Alaska | $65,303 | $31,277 | 2.09 |
| 50 | Washington | $97,951 | $46,867 | 2.09 |