Jabal Hafeet Mountain Road, United Arab Emirates (iStock)
Americans looking to take a drive on the best roads in the world will have to get on a plane or boat first.
A new survey by the World Economic Forum ranks the USA #16 on its list of national road networks, based on their quality, extensiveness and efficiency, The Sunday Times reports.
The United Arab Emirates topped the list thanks to its dry, tarmac-friendly climate and generous government investment in infrastructure, while Portugal scored a surprise #2 ranking after years of European Union-funded projects. Austria, France and the Netherlands rounded out the top five slots.
The U.S. did beat its North American neighbors, with Canada coming it at #23 and Mexico listed #52, as well as its territory of Puerto Rico at #29.
Sitting at the bottom of the 144-country list is the Indian Ocean nation of East Timor, where an estimated half of its 6,000 km road network remains unpaved.