> Interstate highways are funded by the federal government. The states oversee their construction and maintaince using flow-through federal money.
>
> If I have that figured out correctly, then all Interstate highways should be equal. They're not.
>
> On a recent trip through Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Louisiana, I observed vast differences. I think the states rank somewhat like this:
> Tennessee - best
> Georgia
> Alabama
> Mississippi
> Louisiana - worst
> I crossed Louisiana from east to west almost to Texas and then came back the other way. I-10 was mostly concrete with jarring expansion joints and painful bumps. There were crews out applying asphalt over the concrete and completed sections were some relief, but in a relatively short time, I expect the shifting concrete underneath will break up the asphalt.
>
> I observed the same conditions to a lesser degree in Alabama and Mississippi on I-59. Traffic was light, so I think drivers were taking a longer but smoother route to avoid the uncomfortable roads.
>
> There was a vast improvement at the
> Georgia line and things got still better in Tennessee.
>
> But why, with similar funding, aren't these highways closer to equal from state to state?

I have it from both personal experience and a fairly reliable source that Illinois has the worst roads in the country. You could get LOST in some of those potholes.

~Cheez "Road rage" Liz