Report: New York’s rural roads stand up well, bridges middle of the pack

Jon Campbell

Just 7 percent of roads in rural New York counties were in “poor” condition in 2012 while 14 percent of bridges were “structurally deficient,” a report Thursday from a transportation research group found.

New York’s rural bridges ranked 17th in the nation, according to the report from TRIP, a Washington D.C.-based group backed by the construction industry. It’s rural roads fared better, with just seven states having a smaller share of poorly paved roads.

The data is based on road and bridge ratings from various federal agencies, including the Federal Highway Administration and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The report looked at counties that aren’t home to a city with more than 50,000 people.

“More than 46 million Americans live in rural and less densely populated areas of the country where their primary mode of transportation is a personal vehicle,” Kathleen Bower, AAA vice president of public affairs, said in a statement. “Motorists expect and deserve safe, well maintained roads and bridges no matter if they are traveling on the Interstates or rural roads.”

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