• The roughest overall highway for its entire length is U-301, a short road around Steinaker State Park.

Measuring roughness

Using vehicles equipped with lasers and computers, states annually measure the roughness of all state and federal highways according to the "International Roughness Index" (IRI). State measurements are reported to the Federal Highway Works Administration; the lower the index, the smoother the pavement. The federal government considers an IRI of up to 60 as "smooth" and an IRI of over 175 to be "rough."

Although index data gathering methods are similar across the country, measurements are "not necessarily comparable" because devices and how they're calibrated differ state to state, federal transportation administrators have noted in agency publications.

"That being said, I believe we compare very favorably to most states in our pavement condition," says Carlos M. Braceras, deputy director of the Utah Department of Transportation.

In fact, under federal criteria, data show that only 2.4 percent of Utah highways were "rough" or worse in 2003 — seven times better than the national average of 16.7 percent of all highways considered rough or worse, and 40 times better than the worst-in-the-nation District of Columbia, which reported that 87.3 percent of its highways are considered rough or worse.

Good roads, less cost

Braceras says Utah highways are likely in such good relative condition because of a "good roads cost less" philosophy the state adopted about 15 years ago to save money and extend road life. In short, Braceras said, small-cost repairs of early decay greatly extends a road's life and spares the state the much higher expense of repairing a road allowed to deteriorate.

"It has allowed us to stretch our dollars," Braceras says.

"Sometimes, when a road gets to a point that we cannot do a cheap fix, we'll make a conscious decision to let it go and do a reconstruction on it (later). So I do get comments from folks quite often saying, 'Why are you working on that road, it's perfect, but this other one over here needs work?'

"Well, that one is going to take much more money, and if we wait a couple of years, it's not going to cost much more to do it," Braceras said.

"The needs in the state far outpace our ability to fund them, both from preservation and (expanding) capacity," he said. "But by following a 'good roads cost less' philosophy, we're able to optimize those funds we do have. I am very comfortable in saying that we are doing a good job with pavement preservation, and it's paying dividends."

Ride quality