We've all made plenty of jokes about the fact that the state flower of Michigan is the orange construction cone because of our constant road repairs.

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And all of those repairs, delays, and problems really add up. In fact, according to the latest data from Wallethub, construction congestion costs the average driver in America a whopping $869 in wasted time. And that was just in 2022! They also saw an average of 51 hours spent sitting in traffic. Imagine giving up three days just to sit in your car.

Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth
Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth
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So, how does Michigan faire in this data? turns out... we're part of the problem

Michigan is one of America's worst states to drive in 2023

And no, you can't blame the pot holes for all of it.

Eastbound I-196 at the Grand River
Photo: Google Maps, Getty Photos - William Thomas Cain / Stringer
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According to wallethub, Michigan ranks 9th worst in the country for all of the problems we tend to see while on the roadways. Of the 30 key metrics that they measured, Michigan fell below average in 9 of them.

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Paul Vasarhelyi
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Our worst problem:  auto maintenance problems. (okay, this one you CAN blame on the potholes) We rank 38th in the US when it comes to costly repairs for our vehicles. While not all of those are guaranteed to be pot hole related, they don't help.

We also fell behind in Road Quality and Gas prices, being 27th & 28th in the country. As well as being 22nd in traffic fatalities and 19th in car theft rates.

broken black car on road in winter; crash accident; crumpled hood
Paha_L/ThinkStock/GettyStock
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So while we don't have insane traffic problems like New York and California, the mitten poses its own problems when it comes to traveling around. Be safe- and watch out for hazards.

50 of Michigan's "Must-Drive" Roads

Gas up the car, grab those road munchies and a roadtrip partner that you can trust, and head out on some of Michigan's most unique roads and routes. Make sure you take lots of photos and video!

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