Singapore beats Switzerland for having the best roads in the world
Like most people, we enjoy driving. After all, there’s just something inspiring about riding your favorite wheelset on the open road. That is, if the road quality is right. So it’s good that a new study has ranked the world’s best and worst roads for 2022. By Richard Augustine
The study is definitely helpful. Estimating where you can drive on quality roads has numerous benefits, especially for travellers. Not only does this result in a more comfortable road trip and travel experience, but also an added sense of security and reduced risk of vehicle damage.
Conversely, poorly maintained roads can damage your car and be dangerous for all road users. Poor road surfaces can lead to an increase in accidents; which in turn can lead to an increase in injuries; and sadly deaths.
The best roads in the world
Luckily, Zutobi, an easy and affordable online driver education resource, has ranked some of the best and worst roads in the world. According to the company, the study was conducted by examining the area of each country and the length of its road network worlddata.info.
They then calculated the road kilometers per 100,000 km2. The road quality score per country was obtained TheGlobalEconomy.comwith data collected from the last recorded year (2019) and five years earlier (2014).
After analyzing the data, road quality, traffic fatalities and the relative size of the road network, Zutobi has now presented his findings with the report here. In case you’re wondering, you don’t have to travel far to experience the best roads in the world as Singapore has some of the best.
The Garden City tops the rankings with the highest street total score of over 9/10. It has the best road quality and the fewest road fatalities, 1.69 per 100,000 inhabitants. It is not for nothing that the Formula 1 Grand Prix stops at its street circuit every year. The Netherlands, which was number one in 2014, came second in the 2022 study. The top 5 are rounded off by Switzerland, Japan and Denmark.
The worst roads in the world
When it comes to the worst roads in the world, Kuwait scored a miserable 1.33/10 for quality. The country also had the third-highest number of road fatalities per 100,000 people, nearly 19. Countries rounding out the top 5 for poor road quality are Costa Rica, Georgia, Panama and New Zealand.
Despite its spectacular scenery, the world’s southernmost country has challenging roads due to its mountainous terrain. Another reason New Zealand fell down the rankings is partly due to the 2016 Kaikoura earthquake, which destroyed a large portion of State Highway 1 (New Zealand’s main road).
Across the Causeway, Malaysia has been named the nation with the 12th worst roads in the world. According to the study, the road quality of our neighbors across the border has deteriorated by more than 5% in the last 5 years. Over 22 fatalities per 100,000 have occurred on Malaysia’s highways – the second highest number of fatalities in the world after Saudi Arabia.
(Main and featured image: Hu Chen/Unsplash)
This article was first published on Augustman Singapore.