Total bridges
177
Public highway bridges in Hale County
County profile · official public datasets
Hale County, AL
177 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 49.2% rated Good, 45.8% Fair, 5.1% Poor.
- 177
- Public bridges
- 49.2%
- Good condition
- 5.1%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Hale County posts a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.
- 47th
- of 67 on Poor share
- 5.1%
- Poor-condition share
- 177
- public highway bridges
- 1972
- avg year built
Poor is an FHWA condition category from the lowest applicable component rating (4 or below), not a live crossing-safety or closure decision. Rankings cover counties with at least five public highway bridges.
Hale County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Hale County ranks #47 of 67 Alabama counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 5.1%). Hale County, Alabama contains 177 public highway bridges. Roughly 49.2% are rated “Good,” 45.8% “Fair,” and 5.1% “Poor.” Poor means the lowest applicable deck, superstructure, substructure, or culvert rating is 4 or below on the 0–9 NBI scale. It is a condition category, not a live safety or closure decision.
Responsible agencies inspect covered bridges on risk-based intervals under current NBIS rules and submit inventory data to FHWA annually. The list below shows every NBI-tracked bridge in the county. Use the “Sort by” controls to change the ordering, and click any row for its reported inspection date, traffic count, and condition fields.
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory. See methodology for full definitions.
Good condition
49.2%
87 of 177 rated 7-9
Fair condition
45.8%
81 of 177 rated 5-6
Poor condition
5.1%
9 of 177 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#47 of 67
Among Alabama counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 177 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 49.2% (87)
Fair 45.8% (81)
Poor 5.1% (9)
Hale County's Poor-condition bridges carry 540 vehicle crossings a day
That is 0.4% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 5.1% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 60 crossings a day against 592 for a Good-condition one. A Poor rating is a condition category, not a closure or a live safety judgement; it means the lowest applicable component rating is 4 or below.
Computed over the 177 of 177 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
46.9% of Hale County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
83 of the 177 bridges with a recorded construction year were built in 1974 or earlier. Age alone is not a defect: a well-maintained older bridge can rate Good, and 49.2% of this county's inventory does. Even so, this older cohort is the population from which future Poor ratings are drawn, which is why the age profile below matters alongside the condition split above.
Cutoff derives from the 2024 release year minus a 50-year design life. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
One structure carries 37% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
COUNTY ROAD 21 over ELLIOTTS CREEK RELIEF, built 1960, carries 200 vehicles a day, the most of any Poor-rated structure here. The county's Poor-condition exposure is concentrated rather than evenly spread, so the 9-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 540 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Hale County's bridges were built
177 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1900s 11
1900–1909
11 bridges
- 1910s 1
1910–1919
1 bridges
- 1920s 4
1920–1929
4 bridges
- 1930s 4
1930–1939
4 bridges
- 1940s 4
1940–1949
4 bridges
- 1950s
1950–1959
23 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
34 bridges
- 1970s
1970–1979
16 bridges
- 1980s
1980–1989
29 bridges
- 1990s
1990–1999
26 bridges
- 2000s
2000–2009
15 bridges
- 2010s 8
2010–2019
8 bridges
- 2020s 2
2020–2029
2 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1960s, when 34 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 19.2% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 55 to 64 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1972) matches the Alabama average (1974).
How Hale County compares with Alabama's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 Alabama counties nearest Hale County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 5.1% Poor share is the 3rd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1972 against a peer-group mean of 1972 is in line with the group.
Showing the 5 closest of 66 Alabama counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lamar County | 181 | 26% | 71.8% | 2.2% | 1966 |
| Blount County | 180 | 12.8% | 79.4% | 7.8% | 1968 |
| Macon County | 177 | 24.9% | 64.4% | 10.7% | 1973 |
| Washington County | 177 | 32.8% | 56.5% | 10.7% | 1981 |
| Hale County (this page) | 177 | 49.2% | 45.8% | 5.1% | 1972 |
| Colbert County | 172 | 31.4% | 66.9% | 1.7% | 1972 |
Each share is of that county's own total tracked bridges; peers are the counties with 5 or more bridges whose inventory size is closest to Hale County's. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
Nationwide counties with similar inventory size or average build year
Two NBI-derived peer sets for Hale County, both outside Alabama so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside AL (177 bridges here).
- Seminole County, FL · 177 bridges
- Dodge County, MN · 177 bridges
- Pierce County, NE · 177 bridges
- Marion County, TN · 177 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside AL (1972 here).
- Santa Clara County, CA · avg 1972 · 964 bridges
- Kern County, CA · avg 1972 · 668 bridges
- York County, PA · avg 1972 · 569 bridges
- Middlesex County, NJ · avg 1972 · 563 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
All bridges (177)
COUNTY ROAD 16
GoodOver: LITTLE PRARIE CREEK TRIB
1.3 MI. E. OF CEDARVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1994 Load: 71.6 t ADT: 150
COUNTY ROAD 32
GoodOver: SPARKS CREEK TRIB.
1.9 MI. E. OF DOMINICK, Hale, AL
Built 1982 Load: 72.5 t ADT: 100
COUNTY ROAD 2
GoodOver: BIG PRARIE CREEK TRIB.
1.8 MI. N. OF PRARIEVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1994 Load: 72.8 t ADT: 200
COUNTY ROAD 4
GoodOver: BIG BRUSH CREEK TRIB.
3.1 MI. S. OF DOMINICK, Hale, AL
Built 1978 Load: 72.9 t ADT: 125
COUNTY ROAD 9
GoodOver: LITTLE PRAIRIE CRK(REL)
3.7 MI. N. OF PRARIE EDEN, Hale, AL
Built 1984 Load: 73.2 t ADT: 200
COUNTY ROAD 85
GoodOver: SPARKS CREEK
4.4 MI. S. OF WATER OAK, Hale, AL
Built 1919 Load: 75.5 t ADT: 50
SPRINGHILL CH. RD.
GoodOver: 5 MILE CREEK
2.6 MI.E. OF WATEROAK, Hale, AL
Built 1955 Load: 76.6 t ADT: 40
COUNTY ROAD 16
GoodOver: BIG PRARIE CREEK TRIB.
0.4 MI. W. OF WHITSITT, Hale, AL
Built 1900 Load: 77.8 t ADT: 300
COUNTY ROAD 24
GoodOver: BIG GERMAN CREEK
3.1 MI. W OF GREENSBORO, Hale, AL
Built 1978 Load: 78.0 t ADT: 200
COUNTY ROAD 17
GoodOver: DRY CREEK
1.3 MI. N. OF SAWYERVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1996 Load: 81.9 t ADT: 200
COUNTY ROAD 10
GoodOver: BIG PRARIE CREEK TRIB.
1.4 MI. W. OF PRARIE EDEN, Hale, AL
Built 1949 Load: 83.8 t ADT: 150
COUNTY ROAD 32
GoodOver: 5 MILE CREEK TRIB.
2.8 MI. S. OF HARPER HILL, Hale, AL
Built 1900 Load: 84.7 t ADT: 150
COUNTY ROAD 16
GoodOver: WHITSITT CREEK
0.7 MI. N. OF NEWBERN, Hale, AL
Built 1955 Load: 85.6 t ADT: 300
DAVID CAMBELL ROAD
GoodOver: GILE CREEK
1.2 MI EAST OF HAVANA, Hale, AL
Built 2020 Load: 87.0 t ADT: 47
COUNTY ROAD 2
GoodOver: BIG PRARIE CREEK TRIB.
1.6 MI.N. OF PRARIEVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1900 Load: 87.6 t ADT: 200
PHEASANT RD.
GoodOver: TRIB. TO WHITSITT CREEK
2.1 MI.N. OF NEWBERN, Hale, AL
Built 1955 Load: 88.4 t ADT: 200
COUNTY ROAD 24
GoodOver: BIG GERMAN CREEK TRIB.
5.9 MI. E. OF MILLWOOD, Hale, AL
Built 1978 Load: 88.9 t ADT: 200
COUNTY ROAD 42
GoodOver: HARDIN CREEK TRIB.
2.2 MI. E. OF STEWART, Hale, AL
Built 1985 Load: 88.9 t ADT: 100
EVANS STATION RD
PoorOver: POLE BRIDGE BRANCH
2.5 MI.W. OF EVANSVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1950 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 20
GREER CREEK ROAD
PoorOver: TRIB. TO GREER CREEK
3.6 MI.E. OF LANEVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1955 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 50
GREER CREEK ROAD
PoorOver: TRIB. TO GREER CREEK
4.0 MI.E. OF LANEVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1955 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 50
GREER CREEK RD.
PoorOver: GREER CREEK
3.8 MI. E. OF LANEVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1960 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 50
OLD BEAT 10 RD
PoorOver: TRIB. TO SPARKS CREEK
1.7 MI. E. OF DOMINICK, Hale, AL
Built 1950 Load: 1.8 t ADT: 40
PHILLIPS DAIRY RD
PoorOver: BIG GERMNA CREEK TRIB.
1.1 MI. S OF MELTON, Hale, AL
Built 1979 Load: 1.8 t ADT: 40
STICKNEY RD
PoorOver: TRIB. TO BIG PRARIE CRK
6.8 MI. E. GREENSBORO, Hale, AL
Built 1950 Load: 5.4 t ADT: 40
GROSS RD
PoorOver: PICKS CREEK
2 MI. S. GREENSBORO, Hale, AL
Built 1950 Load: 6.4 t ADT: 50
COUNTY ROAD 21
PoorOver: ELLIOTTS CREEK RELIEF
1.3 MI. S. OF MOUNDVILLE, Hale, AL
Built 1960 Load: 6.4 t ADT: 200
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Related
Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainBridges
Every figure on PlainBridges is rendered directly from federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. NBI condition categories reflect the latest reported inventory record, not a live safety, closure, or travel decision.