Not quite. I think you could read it that way, but I suspect Chesterton had a bit more of a principled idea in mind:
It is a good sign in a nation when things are done badly. It shows that all the people are doing them. And it is bad sign in a nation when such things are done very well, for it shows that only a few experts and eccentrics are doing them, and that the nation is merely looking on
This reminds me of one of the things Chesterton said about his trip to America. He concluded that if Prohibition drove so many families to making such good home-brewed beer, maybe Prohibition wasn't such a bad thing after all.
Where do you live that road construction is efficient?
It might just be that I live too close to Massachusetts, but we have a whole repertoire of "How many road workers does it take to change a light bulb?" jokes around here.
It is a good sign in a nation when things are done badly. It shows that all the people are doing them. And it is bad sign in a nation when such things are done very well, for it shows that only a few experts and eccentrics are doing them, and that the nation is merely looking on
-Chesterton