County profile · official public datasets

Sebastian County, AR

331 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 34.4% rated Good, 59.8% Fair, 5.7% Poor.

331
Public bridges
34.4%
Good condition
5.7%
Poor condition

The verdict

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.

Sebastian County posts a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.

46th
of 75 on Poor share
5.7%
Poor-condition share
331
public highway bridges
1979
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.

Sebastian County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Sebastian County ranks #46 of 75 Arkansas counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 5.7%). Sebastian County, Arkansas contains 331 public highway bridges. Roughly 34.4% are rated “Good,” 59.8% “Fair,” and 5.7% “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.

Total bridges

331

Public highway bridges in Sebastian County

Good condition

34.4%

114 of 331 rated 7-9

Fair condition

59.8%

198 of 331 rated 5-6

Poor condition

5.7%

19 of 331 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#46 of 75

Among Arkansas counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better

Condition distribution

Share of 331 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
34.4% (114)
Fair
59.8% (198)
Poor
5.7% (19)

Sebastian County's Poor-condition bridges carry 37,435 vehicle crossings a day

That is 2.1% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 5.7% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 1,970 crossings a day against 4,458 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 331 of 331 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

40.5% of Sebastian County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

134 of the 331 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 34.4% 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 22.1% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

US 71 - Seb. Co. over Prairie Creek, built 1944, carries 8,291 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 19-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 37,435 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Sebastian County's bridges were built

331 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1990s, when 56 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 16.9% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 25 to 34 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1979) matches the Arkansas average (1980).

Source FHWA National Bridge Inventory (year built) As of 2024 NBI release

How Sebastian County compares with Arkansas's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Arkansas counties nearest Sebastian County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 5.7% Poor share is the 5th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1979 against a peer-group mean of 1983 is in line with the group.

Showing the 5 closest of 74 Arkansas counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Sebastian County and the 5 Arkansas counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Jefferson County 336 5.1%
Sebastian County (this page) 331 5.7%
White County 322 5.3%
Garland County 319 0.9%
Mississippi County 309 9.4%
Union County 289 1%

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 Sebastian 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 Sebastian County, both outside Arkansas so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside AR (331 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside AR (1979 here).

Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.

All 331 Good 114 Fair 198 Poor 19

All bridges (331)

SH 549 SB Lns

Good

Over: SH22 & Ft. Smith RR

Jct Hwy 22 Sec 1, Sebastian, AR

Built 2010 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 1,550

US 71 - NB Lanes

Good

Over: Vineyard Creek-Seb. Co.

8.8 MI N OF SCOTT Co Ln, Sebastian, AR

Built 1996 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 11,500

US71 SEC 13 NB LN

Good

Over: Adamson Creek-Seb. Co.

9.77 MI N SCOTT CO LINE, Sebastian, AR

Built 1996 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 13,500

I-540 NB-Sebastian

Good

Over: Jenny Lind Street

0.95 MI W JCT US 71 & 540, Sebastian, AR

Built 1977 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 13,000

I-540 NB-Seb. Co.

Good

Over: State Highway 22

6.73 Mi NE OK state line, Sebastian, AR

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 27,581

I-540 NB Lanes

Good

Over: Grand Avenue-Seb. Co.

1.77 MI N SH 22, Sebastian, AR

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 25,000

I-540 NB Lanes

Good

Over: Clayton Branch-Seb. Co.

9.14 Mi N. OK State Line, Sebastian, AR

Built 2014 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 25,500

SH 549 NB Lns

Good

Over: Taylor Avenue Seb. Co.

1.7 mi N. of Custer Blvd., Sebastian, AR

Built 2010 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 1,400

SH 549 NB Lns

Good

Over: SH22 & Ft. Smith RR

Jct Hwy 22 Sec 1, Sebastian, AR

Built 2010 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 1,550

AR Hwy 96

Good

Over: Smith Branch-Seb. Co.

JCT SH 252 & 96, Sebastian, AR

Built 2020 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 820

AR Hwy 96

Good

Over: Creek

1.0 Mi North Jct Hwy 22, Sebastian, AR

Built 2023 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,750

County Road 34

Good

Over: Creek - Sebastian Co.

1.3 Mi N Jct Co Rd 35, Sebastian, AR

Built 2009 Load: 46.3 t ADT: 22

Auburn Rd Chaffee

Poor

Over: Creek BR 036

3.75 mi N of Lone Star Ch, Sebastian, AR

Built 1941 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 100

ShawneeDropZone Rd

Poor

Over: Creek-Ft. Chaffee BR 016

0.87 Mi W Jct Hwy 96, Sebastian, AR

Built 1939 Load: 4.5 t ADT: 100

State Highway 45

Poor

Over: Johnson Branch Seb. Co.

JCT SH 45 & SH 252-SEC 0, Sebastian, AR

Built 1958 Load: 15.4 t ADT: 1,305

County Road 192

Poor

Over: Massard Creek Seb. Co.

1.65 MI SE OF CO RD 190, Sebastian, AR

Built 1972 Load: 15.4 t ADT: 259

Marietta Church Rd

Poor

Over: Big Creek BR 028

1.46 mi E. of S. Boundary, Sebastian, AR

Built 1950 Load: 15.4 t ADT: 10

State Highway 45

Poor

Over: Stream- Seb. Co.

0.70 MI N JCT SH 252 & 45, Sebastian, AR

Built 1968 Load: 15.4 t ADT: 2,700

CO RD 7 ZONE G

Poor

Over: Creek Sebastian County

0.35 MI N CO RD 9, Sebastian, AR

Built 1939 Load: 18.1 t ADT: 78

State Highway 96

Poor

Over: Mill Creek

1.5 MI W FRANKLIN CO L, Sebastian, AR

Built 1962 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 200

State Highway 45

Poor

Over: Hackett Creek-Seb. Co.

0.15 M N OF HACKETT, Sebastian, AR

Built 1941 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,920

CR 151

Poor

Over: Vineyard Branch-Seb. Co.

0.3 MI N OF US 71, Sebastian, AR

Built 1925 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 469

US 71 - Seb. Co.

Poor

Over: Prairie Creek

0.1 M N OF SH 252, Sebastian, AR

Built 1944 Load: 24.5 t ADT: 8,291

US 71-Seb. Co.

Poor

Over: Old Prairie Creek

0.09 MI S OF SH 252, Sebastian, AR

Built 1930 Load: 25.4 t ADT: 8,107

State Highway 45

Poor

Over: Prairie Creek Seb. Co.

2.83 MI N JCT SH 96 & 45, Sebastian, AR

Built 1968 Load: 26.3 t ADT: 1,101

S Coker Road

Poor

Over: Adamson Creek- Greenwood

0.25M S Jct SH10/Elm St, Sebastian, AR

Built 1928 Load: 27.2 t ADT: 1,791

State Highway 45

Poor

Over: James Fork Creek Seb.Co.

1.40 MI S OF HACKETT, Sebastian, AR

Built 1948 Load: 28.1 t ADT: 2,700

Park Avenue

Poor

Over: I 540-SEC 1 Seb. Co.

6.76 MI S OF I-40-11, Sebastian, AR

Built 1965 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,554

South Cliff Drive

Poor

Over: I 540-Sec 1 Seb. Co.

0.1 MI SW JCT SH 22, Sebastian, AR

Built 1968 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,600

Rock Crusher Road

Poor

Over: Vache Grasse Cr BR 007

0.73 Mi N Ft Smith Blvd, Sebastian, AR

Built 2008 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 100

Auburn Rd- Chaffee

Poor

Over: Creek BR 031

0.19 mi N. of LoneStar Ch, Sebastian, AR

Built 1941 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 50

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Related

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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.