By sharing sovereignty with the federal government, the 50 states have their own characteristics, including the driving environment. Wallethub quantified these environments to rank the best and worst states to drive in.
To determine the best states to drive to, personal finance website Wallethub analyzes each state using 31 metrics in the categories cost of ownership/maintenance, traffic/infrastructure, safety and vehicle access/maintenance. Based on these criteria, the best states for driving are:
- Iowa
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- North Carolina
- Texas
- Georgia
- Wisconsin
- Tennessee
- Illinois
- Indiana
And the worst states to drive in?
- Hawaii
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- California
- Maryland
- Washington
- Colorado
- Michigan
- Missouri
- Wyoming
A lot has changed in a year.
New Hampshire, New Jersey and Pennsylvania are no longer among the 10 worst states to drive in.
Michigan, Missouri and Wyoming are new to this list. Idaho, Kentucky, Maine, Ohio, and South Dakota make the list of top 10 states. These states have been replaced by Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma and Wisconsin.
Considering only traffic and infrastructure, North Dakota ranks first while Maryland is last. Connecticut is the safest state to drive in. Montana is the least safe state for drivers. The cost of ownership and maintenance is the lowest in Tennessee. Meanwhile, drivers spend the most in California, but Californians have the most access to vehicles and maintenance. Alaska has the least access to vehicles and maintenance.
Among the subcategories, there is a 15-fold difference between the state with the lowest percentage of peak-hour traffic congestion (West Virginia at 6%) and the highest percentage (California at 87%). Colorado has the highest rate of auto theft, while drivers in Vermont are the least likely to have their car stolen.
California ranks first in several categories, including least days with precipitation, most auto repair shops per capita, most car washes per capita (tied with Florida and Texas), and highest average fuel prices. LL
