In 1991, we reported on Interstate conditions. In that report, we raised  concerns about the poor condition of Interstate highways and about  FHWA’s oversight of them. The  original purposes of the system were to provide for efficient long-distance  travel, support defense requirements, and connect metropolitan and  industrial areas. State  departments of transportation manage most of the “hands-on” work of  constructing, maintaining, and planning for the future of the Interstate  System. State spending  of federal, state, and local funds for Interstates grew from $13.0 billion in  1992 to $16.2 billion in 2000. 11). Furthermore,  Interstate highways are generally more congested than other freeways and  other principal arterials. State respondents generally do not expect that their efforts to alleviate  congestion will be entirely successful. IV for the states’  responses.) Costs to Maintain Interstates Are Uncertain

It is difficult to identify state needs on the Interstate System and to  determine what level of funding is needed to meet these needs. Accordingly, this report  examines the condition of the Interstate System, including, (1) how the role  of the Interstate System has changed over time; (2) the roles of the federal  and state governments in managing and funding the Interstate System; (3)  the financial resources that states and the federal government have  devoted to the system; (4) how physical conditions, safety, and congestion  of the Interstate System have changed and how they compare to other  classes of roads; and (5) the factors that could affect future Interstate  conditions and the cost of addressing these factors.
Why GAO Did This Study

Federal spending on Interstate highways has contributed to changes in residential and business land-use patterns. In 1991, GAO raised concerns about the condition of Interstate highways and rising levels of congestion. The original purposes for the Interstate system were to provide for efficient long-distance travel, support defense, and connect metropolitan and industrial areas. Today, the most important role that the Interstates perform, other than supporting safe travel, is moving freight traffic across their states. The federal government provides funding for, and oversight of, the Interstate system while the states do most of the maintaining and planning for the future of the system. Combined federal and state spending on the Interstate System increased from $13.0 billion in 1992 to 16.2 billion in 2000.

What GAO Found

States are required to pay ten percent of the cost of an Interstate project; however, GAO found that the average nonfederal share of urban Interstate projects was 15 percent and 11 percent for rural projects. Interstate highways are in better physical condition and are safer than other classes of roads, although they are generally more congested. The states expect that increased traffic, the aging of the infrastructure, and funding constraints will affect their ability to maintain physical and safety conditions of the Interstate Systems and to alleviate congestion, but the costs to address the factors pressuring their Interstates were difficult to determine.