Wednesday, Sep. 3, 2025

Does South Dakota have some of the nation’s best roads?

Michael Klinski, South Dakota News Watch

yes

South Dakota’s interstates and highways are among the best maintained in the nation.

US News & World Report ranked the state second in road quality and second in infrastructure.

The state is ranked third by the Bureau of Transportation, which reports that South Dakota’s roads are 95% “acceptable,” behind Indiana (97%) and Kansas (96%). The regional rankings: Minnesota (90.5%), Iowa (91.3), Nebraska (92.6%), Wyoming (94.9%) and North Dakota (93.3%).

South Dakota’s roads have improved since 1995, when the bureau said 84.5% of the state’s roads were “acceptable.”

But the state might not be ranked highly for long. Department of Transportation Secretary Joel Jundt told lawmakers in January that by 2034, 30% of state roadways will be in fair or poor condition, still well above the target of 20%.

He cited the potential for decreased federal funding and major bridge replacement projects among the reasons.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

U.S. News & World Report Road quality rankings
Bureau of Transportation Road condition reports
South Dakota Searchlight Roads, bridges will worsen in next decade, transportation leader says

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Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.

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Does South Dakota have some of the nation’s best roads?

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