Here's where Minnesota lands in a ranking of best and worst states to drive in
MINNEAPOLIS — As the old saying goes, Minnesota has only two seasons: winter and road construction. But despite the obvious difficulties motorists in the state face throughout the year, it's not the worst state to drive in according to a new ranking — not by a long shot.
Earlier this month, WalletHub released its rankings of the best and worst states to drive in for 2024, comparing all 50 states using key indicators of a positive commute. Some of the indicators include average gas prices, rush-hour traffic congestion and road quality.
Minnesota's southern neighbor, Iowa, took the top spot as the best place to drive in. Iowa was graded particularly well when it comes to the cost of ownership & maintenance (No. 5), as well as traffic and infrastructure (No. 6).
"Iowa is the best state to drive in, due in part to the fact that it's a rural state and has one of the lowest rush-hour traffic congestion rates in the country," the WalletHub article states. " In addition, Iowa drivers tend to have short commutes, at less than 20 minutes on average."
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Georgia and Kansas follow Iowa in the ranking as the second- and third-best states to drive in, respectively.
Minnesota landed right in the middle of the ranking at No. 25 overall. According to WalletHub's data, Minnesota's score suffered most when it came to the traffic and congestion ranking (No. 38).
The ranking had Minnesota as the 18th-best state for cost of ownership & maintenance, 19th for access to vehicles & maintenance and 25th for safety.
The worst state to drive in is Hawaii, despite being the eighth-safest place to drive. It scored poorly in the other categories. Hawaii is followed by Washington and Delaware.
For more on the study and its methodology, click here.