WASHINGTON, D.C. –America’s rural transportation system is in need of repairs and modernization to support economic growth and improve traffic safety, but the US faces a $198 billion backlog in funding for needed repairs and improvements to its rural transportation system. This is according to a new report released today by TRIP, a national transportation research nonprofit. The report, Rural Connections: Examining the Safety, Connectivity, Condition and Funding Needs of America’s Rural Roads & Bridges, evaluates the safety and condition of the nation’s rural roads and bridges and finds that the nation’s rural transportation system is in need of immediate improvements to address deficient roads and bridges, high crash rates, and inadequate connectivity and capacity.
Roads, highways, rails and bridges in the nation’s rural areas face significant challenges: they lack adequate capacity, they fail to provide needed levels of connectivity to many communities, and they cannot adequately support growing freight travel in many corridors. Rural roads and bridges have significant deficiencies and deterioration, they lack many desirable safety features, and rural non-Interstate roads experience fatal traffic crashes at a rate far higher than all other roads and highways.
The chart below ranks states with the highest share of rural pavements in poor condition, rural bridges rated poor/structurally deficient, and fatality rates on non-Interstate, rural roads. Data for all 50 states is included in the report Appendices.
The report finds that Missouri’s rural roads and bridges have significant deficiencies. Twenty-one percent of Missouri’s rural roads are rated in poor condition – the seventh highest rate in the nation- and 28 percent are in mediocre condition. Ten percent of Missouri’s rural bridges are rated in poor/structurally deficient condition, the eleventh highest rate in the nation. Bridges rated poor/structurally deficient have significant deterioration to the major components of the bridge and are often posted for lower weight or closed to traffic, restricting or redirecting large vehicles, including agricultural equipment, commercial trucks, school buses and emergency services vehicles. The rate of traffic fatalities on Missouri’s non-Interstate, rural roads in 2022 was significantly higher than the fatality rate on all other roads in the state – 1.60 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles of travel vs. 1.18. There were 451 fatalities on Missouri’s non-Interstate, rural roads in 2022. Rural roads are more likely to have narrow lanes, limited shoulders, sharp curves, exposed hazards, pavement drop-offs, steep slopes and limited clear zones along roadsides.
America’s rural transportation system provides the first and last link in the supply chain from farm to market, connects manufacturers to their customers, supports the tourism industry, and enables the production of energy, food and fiber. Rural Americans are more reliant on the quality of their transportation system than their urban counterparts, with vehicle travel in rural communities averaging approximately 50 percent higher than in urban communities.
“This report underscores the need for infrastructure investment in rural America to ensure the roads, bridges, and highways our nation’s equipment manufacturers rely on are efficient, safe, and reliable,” said Todd Stucke, president of Kubota Tractor Corporation and chair of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. “Our freight transportation network—which largely consists of rural communities where our food, fiber, and fuel is produced—remains a vital part of our economy’s supply chain. Allowing it to fall into a state of disrepair will not only cost us more money down the road to modernize, but it will also disrupt our industry’s ability to remain competitive globally.”
Signed into law in November 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is providing a significant boost in federal investment in roads, bridges and transit and offers an opportunity for the nation to make progress in improving the safety, reliability and condition of America’s transportation system. The IIJA will provide $454 billion over the five-year period from 2022 to 2026 for investment in highways and transit, resulting in a 31 percent increase in federal investment over the previous federal surface transportation program. The IIJA includes a $2 billion Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program that will support projects to improve and expand the surface transportation infrastructure in rural areas to increase connectivity, improve the safety and reliability of the movement of people and freight, and generate regional economic growth and improve quality of life.
“Rural roads, highways and bridges connect farms to the pantries of every family in America,” said American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “Transportation delays and poorly maintained roads put the safety of rural Americans at risk and undermine farmers’ ability to contribute to a stable food supply. While the IIJA offers an opportunity to improve the reliability and condition of America’s transportation system, we must increase funding in the National Highway Trust Fund to ensure our roads continue to bring agriculture products to market.”
An analysis of the Status of the Nation’s Highways, Bridges and Transit Conditions and Performance Report, 25th Edition report, submitted by the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) to Congress in 2024, indicates that the U.S. faces a $198 billion backlog in needed repairs and improvements to the nation’s rural roads, highways and bridges. This includes a $97 billion backlog for rural road and highway rehabilitation, a $53 billion backlog for needed rural bridge rehabilitation, and a $48 billion backlog for needed rural roadway expansions and enhancements.
“Transportation infrastructure provides critical connections for our rural communities nationwide, supporting their health and driving commerce. Addressing the significant deficiencies outlined in this report is essential not only for safety but also for ensuring that our rural communities continue to succeed,” said John Drake, vice president for transportation, infrastructure, and supply chain policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “With the support provided by the IIJA, we have an unprecedented opportunity to modernize these vital connections and strengthen the foundation of rural America’s economic future.”
“The health of the nation’s economy and the safety and quality of life in America’s small communities and rural areas ride on our rural transportation system,” said Dave Kearby, executive director of TRIP. “Providing the nation with a rural transportation network that supports rural America’s economy and will support its future development will require that the U.S. invest in a rural transportation system that is safe, efficient, and well-maintained, and that provides adequate mobility and connectivity to the nation’s rural communities.”