The United States is a country with many miles of highways that people travel on every day to get to work, run errands and go on vacation. Unfortunately for Wisconsin residents, a recent assessment ranked the roads in that state as the fifth worst in the country.
Why do Wisconsin’s roads rank so poorly against the national average?
Weather and climate
Anyone who lives in Wisconsin knows that winters are long and harsh, bringing an excessive amount of snow and ice along with bitterly cold temperatures. The state also experiences a large swing in temperatures throughout the year. Over time, these harsh conditions cause roadways to contract and expand, leading to holes in the road that can potentially cause damage to some motor vehicles. In addition, long winters may prevent construction workers from being able to make necessary repairs to roadways.
Lack of funding
State and local municipalities determine what percentage of their budget goes into repairing existing roads and building new roads. Some parts of Wisconsin have less money to spend on their highways than other parts, which inhibits their ability to fix roads that are in bad shape. There are also many areas of the state that are very rural, and some voters may not think that it is worth it to fix roads in those locations until the situation become quite bad.
Wisconsin drivers should be aware of why some of their roads may be in bad shape and take extra precautions while traveling on those highways.
