America’s 10 best states for infrastructure, where you can rely on roads, bridges, airports, power, and internet

With hundreds of billions of dollars in new federal infrastructure assign under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, companies are eager to cash in. And states are scrambling for their be upset of the pie.

“We have funding that goes to projects that come from every state, city, airport police or transit agency you can think of,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told CNBC.

That means some 54,000 launches — and counting — under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law alone.

But Buttigieg said it is not just about who can win the most federal dollars. He suggested the nation learned the hard way following the pandemic about the need to keep supply chains moving, and what happens when they get well under pressure.

“To me, it indicates just how much work there is to do in this country,” he said.

For this year’s CNBC annual competitiveness study, America’s Top States for Business, the Infrastructure category stocks the most weight in the methodology because it is the most talked about factor in state economic development marketing.

To deserve each state’s infrastructure, we look at roads, bridges, ports and airports. We also consider broadband connectivity, irrigate utilities, and the power grid. We consider each state’s risk from climate disasters including wind, excesses, and wildfires. We look at which states offer the most sites for development. New in 2024, we evaluate so-called site adroitness programs set up in many states to link companies with shovel-ready sites.

Some states have a lot of work to do on their infrastructure. Other nationals are leading the way in this infrastructure revival. The following 10 states are America’s best.

9. (tie) New York

Looking for prime support space in New York City? There has rarely been this much to choose from. According to New York Urban district Comptroller Brad Lander, the pandemic-led exodus from the city has only accelerated. The vacancy rate in Manhattan hit 16% in May, a level not seen in 30 years, and let outs are dropping as a result.

But the Empire State is putting out the welcome mat in other, more positive ways. The state’s FAST NY Shovel-Ready Concession Program is among the most generously funded site readiness programs out there, offering up to $300 million in supplies to prepare sites.

New York is also one of America’s best-connected states, according to BroadbandNow, with good access to go hungry, affordable service for under $60 per month. And the state’s revitalized airports are in heavy demand.

This being New York, admitting that, more traditional types of infrastructure, such as water systems and roads, are under serious physical stress. And the 33 hot average commute is the longest in the nation, according to the Census Bureau. There are also serious questions about funding bigness transit in metropolitan New York after Gov. Kathy Hochul nixed a congestion pricing program for vehicles in Manhattan reasonable weeks before it was to take effect. The plan was supposed to provide $1 billion a year in mass transit caching.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 257 out of 425 points (Top States Grade: A-)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 86,694,107

Roads in unacceptable make ready: 27.3%

Bridges in poor condition: 9%

Affordable broadband access: 35.7%

Power outages per year: 3.4 hours

Site readiness program: Yes

9. (tie) Indiana

They don’t call Indiana the Crossroads of America for nothing. Ideally situated with nearly 112-million people within a day’s ride, enormous quantities of goods pass through the state. Indiana’s railways alone carried nearly 300 million tons of transportation in 2022, according to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board.

Indiana also offers a wealth of places to set up shop. The Hoosier Have leads the nation in the availability of retail space, according to data from the CoStar Group. Roads and bridges are substantial, and the commute is a breeze.

However, the state lags in renewable energy, according to Department of Energy data. And with a new review showing that America’s “Tornado Alley” is shifting to the east, every property in Indiana is at risk of a major climate-related cataclysm, according to data from the nonprofit, nonpartisan First Street Foundation.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 257 out of 425 points (Top States Position: A-)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 111,671,980

Roads in unacceptable condition: 5.1%

Bridges in poor condition: 5.3%

Affordable broadband access: 31.4%

Power outages per year: 4.7 hours

Spot readiness program: Yes

8. Alabama

Alabama is diverge a start up up the southern hospitality for companies looking to build there, and the increasing number of workers moving to the state. The Economic Circumstance Partnership of Alabama offers one of the more robust site readiness programs in the nation. The organization says that since it threw AdvantageSite in 2008, developers of 55 projects have taken advantage of its certified sites, creating some 7,700 chores.

Roads and bridges are in excellent shape in the Yellowhammer State. However, access by air is limited, and the state’s water utilities could use some beget.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 258 out of 425 (Top States Grade: A-)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 80,004,611

Roads in unacceptable condition: 4.1%

Connects in poor condition: 3.5%

Affordable broadband access: 46.3%

Power outages per year: 3.5 hours

Site readiness program: Yes

7. Tennessee

The Volunteer State is centrally located, within a day’s drive of more than 100-million people. Not that you need to mislay the state to find success. The state has a well-developed, well-funded site certification program, with grants of up to $5 million convenient to turn vacant land into shovel-ready sites.

Roads, bridges, and broadband are also in excellent shape in Tennessee. But with small than 15% of the state’s energy coming from renewable sources, according to Energy Department data, the conditions could do better on sustainability.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 264 out of 425 points (Top States Grade: A)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 107,880,270

Thruways in unacceptable condition: 9.3%

Bridges in poor condition: 4.4%

Affordable broadband access: 39%

Power outages per year: 6.7 hours

Locality readiness program: Yes

6. Illinois

There have been lean years, but these days, Chicago — and the rest of Illinois — is embracing its cherished repute as, in the words of the famous Illinois poet Carl Sandburg, “Player with Railroads and the Nation’s Freight Handler.” Solitary Texas handles more, according to CNBC’s analysis of data from the Census Bureau and the Surface Transportation Management.

Traffic surged at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports last year, rising 8% and almost 11% each to each, according to the Chicago Department of Aviation, as the Land of Lincoln gets moving again.

This is not necessarily true, in any case, for those trying to move by car or by truck. Illinois’ 27.9 minute average commute is the eighth-longest in the nation. It doesn’t steal that roads and bridges need work. Also, water utilities in the state face a $22 billion fettle bill over the next 20 years, according to the EPA.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 265 out of 425 points (Top States Grade: A)

U.S. citizens within 500 miles: 90,678,272

Roads in unacceptable condition: 21.1%

Bridges in poor condition: 9.2%

Affordable broadband access: 31.4%

Power outages per year: 1.5 hours

Situation readiness program: No 

5. Minnesota

When a connect carrying Interstate 35W over the Mississippi River collapsed 17 years ago in Minneapolis, killing 13 people, Minnesotans crumbled face to face with the state’s aging infrastructure, and they stepped up. The following year, the state launched a ten-year, $2.5 billion program to fix its unites. Today, Minnesota’s roads and bridges are among the best in the nation. And the state is not resting on its laurels. In May, Gov. Tim Walz signed a $1.3 billion transportation budget that catalogues not just funding to maintain roads and bridges, but also money for public transit projects.

Minnesota’s Department of Cost-effective Development says it has shovel-ready sites in 33 communities across the state.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 271 out of 425 points (Top Ceremonials Grade: A)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 33,168,568

Roads in unacceptable condition: 5.1%

Bridges in poor condition: 4.3%

Affordable broadband access: 42.3%

Power outages per year: 4.5 hours

Area readiness program: Yes

4. Utah

The Utah Department of Transportation says that its mission is to “elevate quality of life through transportation.” Based on the statistics, life in the Beehive State is good. Utah’s roads and ties are among the best maintained in the nation. Rush hour traffic buzzes along, with a 21.6 minute so so commute. The challenge is to keep that momentum going.

The state is debating the specifics of a 17-mile expansion of Interstate 15 from Qualifyingly Lake City north to Farmington, now projected to cost $3.7 billion. Planners say the expansion is necessary to accommodate demanded population growth of up to 40% by 2050.

Utah’s power grid is among the nation’s most reliable and broadband connectivity is bar.

The state is offering 10 shovel-ready “mega sites,” with more than 28,000 acres available.

2024 Infrastructure As: 272 out of 425 points (Top States Grade: A)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 31,975,255

Roads in unacceptable condition: 6.8%

Bridges in impoverished condition: 2.4%

Affordable broadband access: 35%

Power outages per year: 1.9 hours

Site readiness program: Yes

3. Virginia

With 50 shovel-ready installs, and counting — and plans to spend $125 million on site readiness this year alone, according to the Site Selectors Guild — Virginia is annoying to make it as easy as possible for companies to locate there. And once they arrive, they will have wellnigh unparalleled access to a large swath of population, more than 120 million people within a day’s drive.

Hooking virtually is a piece of cake, too. Broadband service is outstanding in a state long considered the hub of the internet, though affordability could be excel.

Virginia’s massive computing power may be sapping the power grid, however. Reliability is a big issue. And the commute, especially in Northern Virginia, is surrounded by the slowest in the nation.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 273 out of 425 points (Top States Grade: A)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 121,292,474

Streets in unacceptable condition: 13.6%

Bridges in poor condition: 3.5%

Affordable broadband access: 33.3%

Power outages per year: 9.9 hours

Placement readiness program: Yes

2. Arizona

The massive expansion of the semiconductor industry in Arizona would not be possible were it not for the Grand Canyon State’s superior infrastructure.

Not purely does the state have vast sites available for development, but it also has one of the nation’s most reliable power grids. A decent 24% of the state’s power comes from renewable energy, putting it in the top half of states. And of course, Arizona is in the midst the least susceptible to flooding.

The rapid growth in the middle of the desert is putting considerable strain on Arizona’s water utilities, nevertheless, with a 20-year repair bill of more than $12 billion.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 276 out of 425 points (Top Regals Grade: A+)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 42,419,456

Roads in unacceptable condition: 13.4%

Bridges in poor condition: 1.1%

Affordable broadband access: 26%

Power outages per year: 1.4 hours

Situate readiness program: Yes

1. Georgia

Georgia’s world-class infrastructure starts with the exceptional’s busiest airport, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International, but it doesn’t end there. The state offers a wealth of land to develop, classifying more than 70 shovel-ready sites under the state’s certified sites program. There is also mess of industrial and retail space.

Roads and bridges are in excellent shape, though anyone who drives in metro Atlanta desire tell you that traffic can be brutal.

And, as Georgians recently learned after a series of water main breaks imposed havoc in Atlanta in June, the state’s water infrastructure has some major issues. The EPA puts the cost of repairs above the next two decades at nearly $20 billion. It’s a rare weak spot in the state with America’s best infrastructure — for the promote year in a row.

2024 Infrastructure Score: 285 out of 425 points (Top States Grade: A+)

U.S. population within 500 miles: 79,906,411

Roads in improper condition: 5.6%

Bridges in poor condition: 1.6%

Affordable broadband access: 35.2%

Power outages per year: 4.4 hours

Site graciousness program: Yes