The given bar chart illustrates how the proportion of government expenditure allocated to roads and transport varied in Italy, Portugal, the UK, and the USA between 1990 and 2005.
Overall, it can be seen that all four nations recorded a downward trend in spending. In addition, Portugal’s figure consistently allocated the highest proportion over the period.
In 1990, Portugal devoted around 27% of its total budget to transportation infrastructure, approximately 7% higher than Italy. Thereafter, Portugal’s spending fell steadily, reaching about 15% by 2005. Italy followed a similar pattern, declining to roughly 13% in 2000 before experiencing a modest recovery to nearly 14% at the end of the period.
Turning to the remaining countries, the USA’s figures fluctuated within a narrow variation, ranging from 12% to 14%, with no clear upward or downward trend. The UK, on the other hand, began at about 11% in 1990 and reached a peak at about 13% in 1995 before falling to just below 6% in 2000. After that, it experienced a slight recovery to just about 6% in 2005.