SW 42nd Avenue
Carrying SW 42nd Avenue over Coral Gables Canal
N Edge of Cocoplum Circle, Miami-Dade, Florida
Inventory: FHWA NBI 2024 · last ETL August 2026
FHWA NBI record, refreshed with each annual release.
SW 42nd Avenue in Miami-Dade, Florida sits above 1% of rated Florida bridges on inventory load rating (8 t), while its 1943 build year is earlier than 97% of Miami-Dade's recorded-year cohort (1,057 bridges).
SW 42nd Avenue in Miami-Dade, Florida is rated Poor in the FHWA's 2024 National Bridge Inventory. Built in 1943, 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 FL:874275
PRE-1950 · STEEL · MULTI-SPAN · SUPER-LED · HEAVY-ADT · LIGHT-LOAD · CAT-POOR
- PRE-1950 Pre-1950
- STEEL Steel
- MULTI-SPAN 3 spans
- SUPER-LED Superstructure-led
- HEAVY-ADT Heavy ADT
- LIGHT-LOAD Light 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: SW 42nd Avenue
The SW 42nd Avenue bridge in Miami-Dade, Florida carries SW 42nd Avenue over Coral Gables Canal. It was built in 1943, making it 83 years old today. The structure is built primarily of steel and spans 3 sections, stretching 40.0 meters (131 feet) end to end. Daily traffic averages 34,503 vehicles, placing it in the heavily-trafficked tier of Florida bridges. It is owned and maintained by County Highway Agency.
The latest FHWA inspection records show a deck rating of 5/9, superstructure at 4/9, substructure at 7/9. The weakest component sits in poor condition. A component scored 4 or below, placing this bridge in the federal Poor condition category rather than declaring it unsafe or closed.
How SW 42nd Avenue compares
Age against the county: built in 1943, earlier than 1,021 of Miami-Dade's 1,057 bridges with a recorded construction year (97%), against a county median build year of 1973. Age is not a defect on its own, but it is the population from which future Poor ratings are drawn.
Live comparison across Florida bridges with a recorded inventory load rating (13,032 of 13,036 rated).
SW 42nd Avenue vs every rated Florida bridge
Inventory load rating (metric tons), FHWA NBI, this state
8 Top 99% higher than 1% of 13,032 bridges
rated Florida 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.
Miami-Dade inventory by recorded NBI category
Exclusive Good/Fair/Poor bands across all 1,057 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
- 1943
- Material
- Steel
- Number of Spans
- 3
- Structure Length
- 40.0 m (131 ft)
- Deck Width
- 10.7 m (35 ft)
- Owner
- County Highway Agency
- Avg Daily Traffic
- 34,503 vehicles/day
- Structure Number
- 874275
Condition Analysis
- • At 5/9, the deck (driving surface) shows fair condition, with minor wear flagged for upkeep.
- • At 4/9, the superstructure (beams and supports above the deck) is in poor shape, with advanced wear on file for this vintage.
- • 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
SW 42nd Avenue 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 SW 42nd Avenue against other structures in Miami-Dade and across Florida. Florida 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 SW 42nd Avenue?
SW 42nd Avenue in Miami-Dade, Florida has a deck rating of 5/9, superstructure rating of 4/9, and substructure rating of 7/9 on the FHWA's 0–9 scale.
How often is SW 42nd Avenue inspected?
SW 42nd Avenue'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 34,503 vehicles per day.
What does “structurally deficient” mean in older bridge reports?
FHWA retired that reported status beginning with the 2018 archive. SW 42nd Avenue 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 SW 42nd Avenue?
SW 42nd Avenue has an NBI inventory load rating of 7.6 metric tons.
Who is responsible for maintaining SW 42nd Avenue?
SW 42nd Avenue is owned and maintained by County Highway Agency.
How old is SW 42nd Avenue and does age affect safety?
SW 42nd Avenue was built in 1943, making it 83 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.
Share this inspection record
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.