CARLTON HILL BLVD
Carrying CARLTON HILL BLVD over SAN DIEGO RIVER
0.2MI N/O MISSION GORGE, San Diego, California
Inventory: FHWA NBI 2024 · last ETL August 2026
FHWA NBI record, refreshed with each annual release.
CARLTON HILL BLVD in San Diego, California sits above 92% of rated California bridges on inventory load rating (46 t), while its 1978 build year is earlier than 40% of San Diego's recorded-year cohort (1,632 bridges).
CARLTON HILL BLVD in San Diego, California is rated Poor in the FHWA's 2024 National Bridge Inventory. Built in 1978, it carries 3 rated components on the inspecting agency's 0-9 scale, and its weakest reported component scores 4. The lowest applicable rating sets the federal condition category, so this Poor result describes the weakest reported component rather than the structure as a whole. No NBI category is a closure decision or a live crossing-safety verdict.
NBI record plate
Structure CA:57C0523
INTERSTATE-ERA · CONCRETE · LONG-SPAN-RUN · TIED-CTRL · HEAVY-ADT · HEAVY-LOAD · CAT-POOR
- INTERSTATE-ERA 1950–1979
- CONCRETE Concrete
- LONG-SPAN-RUN 12 spans
- TIED-CTRL Tied control
- HEAVY-ADT Heavy ADT
- HEAVY-LOAD Heavy load
- CAT-POOR Poor
Inspection-sheet codes from this record’s year, material family, spans, controlling component, ADT, inventory load, and NBI category, not a live closure verdict.
Bridge Snapshot: CARLTON HILL BLVD
The CARLTON HILL BLVD bridge in San Diego, California carries CARLTON HILL BLVD over SAN DIEGO RIVER. It was built in 1978, making it 48 years old today. The structure is built primarily of concrete continuous and spans 12 sections, stretching 152.4 meters (500 feet) end to end. Daily traffic averages 23,227 vehicles, placing it in the heavily-trafficked tier of California bridges. It is owned and maintained by City/Municipal Highway Agency.
The latest FHWA inspection records show a deck rating of 4/9, superstructure at 4/9, substructure at 7/9. The weakest component sits in poor condition. At least one major component here scores 4 or below, which produces a Poor condition classification under FHWA's current reporting rules.
How CARLTON HILL BLVD compares
Age against the county: built in 1978, earlier than 646 of San Diego's 1,632 bridges with a recorded construction year (40%), against a county median build year of 1974. This is one of the newer structures in its county.
Live comparison across California bridges with a recorded inventory load rating (25,538 of 25,848 rated).
CARLTON HILL BLVD vs every rated California bridge
Inventory load rating (metric tons), FHWA NBI, this state
46 Top 8% higher than 92% of 25,538 bridges
rated California bridges, bucketed by value
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more bridges. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source FHWA National Bridge Inventory · August 2026
Condition Ratings
Full 0–9 scale + sufficiency-rating breakdown: how condition ratings work.
Reported 0–9 component ratings from the FHWA NBI. The highlighted component is the lowest reported input to this record’s current condition category; it is not a closure or live crossing-safety decision.
San Diego inventory by recorded NBI category
Exclusive Good/Fair/Poor bands across all 1,632 bridges in this county. Orthogonal to this structure's component profile above: a county catalog share, not a live crossing-safety verdict.
Structural Details
- Year Built
- 1978
- Material
- Concrete Continuous
- Number of Spans
- 12
- Structure Length
- 152.4 m (500 ft)
- Deck Width
- 23.2 m (76 ft)
- Owner
- City/Municipal Highway Agency
- Avg Daily Traffic
- 23,227 vehicles/day
- Structure Number
- 57C0523
Condition Analysis
- • At 4/9, the deck (driving surface) is in poor shape, with advanced wear on file for this vintage.
- • The superstructure (beams and supports above the deck) rates poor at 4/9, with advanced deterioration recorded on the latest inspection.
- • The substructure (piers and abutments) is in good condition (7/9), showing no significant deterioration.
Location
Data Source
FHWA National Bridge Inventory (NBI).
FHWA NBI Program ↗How to read this record
CARLTON HILL BLVD is in the federal Poor condition category. That is a component-based result, not a closure order.
- NBI condition ratings reflect the latest record in this annual dataset, not a live status. Current routine inspection intervals are risk-based.
- Understand what Poor condition does and does not mean before drawing conclusions. Poor condition explained
- Compare CARLTON HILL BLVD against other structures in San Diego and across California. California bridges
- Noticed visible damage or a safety concern? Report it to the agency that owns the bridge, or call 911 in an emergency. How to report a bridge
Condition codes come straight from the FHWA National Bridge Inventory and are not a real-time safety judgment. Only the owning agency, a state DOT, county, or other owner, can post, restrict, or close a bridge.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do the condition ratings mean for CARLTON HILL BLVD?
CARLTON HILL BLVD in San Diego, California has a deck rating of 4/9, superstructure rating of 4/9, and substructure rating of 7/9 on the FHWA's 0–9 scale.
How often is CARLTON HILL BLVD inspected?
CARLTON HILL BLVD's responsible agency sets its routine interval under FHWA's risk-based inspection rules; this page does not expose the scheduled interval. It carries about 23,227 vehicles per day.
What does “structurally deficient” mean in older bridge reports?
FHWA retired that reported status beginning with the 2018 archive. CARLTON HILL BLVD is currently shown as Poor condition from its component ratings; that category is not a live closure or safety decision.
What is the inventory load rating for CARLTON HILL BLVD?
CARLTON HILL BLVD has an NBI inventory load rating of 46.3 metric tons.
Who is responsible for maintaining CARLTON HILL BLVD?
CARLTON HILL BLVD is owned and maintained by City/Municipal Highway Agency.
How old is CARLTON HILL BLVD and does age affect safety?
CARLTON HILL BLVD was built in 1978, making it 48 years old.
Disclaimer: Bridge condition data is from the FHWA NBI and reflects the last reported inspection. A Poor condition rating is not a live declaration that a bridge is closed or unsafe for travel. For current closure, posting, or safety information, contact the responsible transportation agency.
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Send this source-bounded record or download its data card. An NBI condition category is not a closure or live crossing-safety verdict.
Every figure on PlainBridges is rendered directly from federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. Component ratings, ADT, and condition category on this page are copied from the NBI record for this structure; no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2024 NBI release. NBI condition categories reflect the latest reported inventory record, not a live safety, closure, or travel decision.