Highways and roads, the largest component of public infrastructure assets in the province, accounted for 59% of the total in 2007. The average age of this asset rose steadily from 12.3 years in 1973 to 16.8 years in 2005 as the rate of new investment failed to keep pace with the ageing of previous investments. The trend reversed in the most recent two years with the average age dropping to 16.4 years in 2007.
While there has been a steady ageing of the province's road infrastructure since the mid-1970s, roads and highways remained younger than the national average until the early 2000s.
In 2007, the average age of Newfoundland and Labrador's roads reached 58% of their estimated useful life, compared with 53% for Canadian roads. As a result, the province had, along with Nova Scotia, the third oldest road network, behind Manitoba and Saskatchewan.