TRIP: Poor roads and bridges, traffic jams costing N.Y. drivers $24.8B a year
The national nonprofit TRIP organization estimates that New York drivers are, on average, each losing $2,768 a year because of poor, unsafe roads and bridges and traffic jams.
In all, these problems are costing the state $24.8 billion a year, according to the report, New York Transportation by the Numbers: Meeting the State’s Need for Safe, Smooth and Efficient Mobility.
It says 28 percent of the local and state roads in New York are in poor condition; 21 percent are in mediocre condition, and 10 percent of the bridges that are at least 20 feet long are in poor condition. City streets are also becoming more congested, and unsafe roads are causing crashes.
TRIP says all that amounts to extra “vehicle operating costs” (VOC), which include costs incurred from driving on rough roads that lead to costly repairs and additional maintenance, lost time and fuel because of traffic, and crashes.
<snip>
The TRIP report’s breakdown of the costs to drivers by New York region and the state’s total cost.
Read more: https://www.equipmentworld.com/trip-poor-roads-bridges-traffic-jams-costing-n-y-drivers/
More bridge and road work is needed in New York, where 52 percent of the bridges are 50 years old or older, according to TRIP’s new report. The organization would like to see more projects like the bridge on Route 73 south of Lake Placid, shown above, that was completed in 2017. Photo by NYSDOT