Total bridges
528
Public highway bridges in Merced County
County profile · official public datasets
Merced County, CA
528 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 32.2% rated Good, 59.5% Fair, 8.3% Poor.
- 528
- Public bridges
- 32.2%
- Good condition
- 8.3%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Merced County posts a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across large county bridge inventory.
- 39th
- of 58 on Poor share
- 8.3%
- Poor-condition share
- 528
- public highway bridges
- 1967
- 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.
Merced County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Merced County ranks #39 of 58 California counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 8.3%). Merced County, California contains 528 public highway bridges. Roughly 32.2% are rated “Good,” 59.5% “Fair,” and 8.3% “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
32.2%
170 of 528 rated 7-9
Fair condition
59.5%
314 of 528 rated 5-6
Poor condition
8.3%
44 of 528 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#39 of 58
Among California counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 528 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 32.2% (170)
Fair 59.5% (314)
Poor 8.3% (44)
Merced County's Poor-condition bridges carry 296,215 vehicle crossings a day
That is 9.1% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 8.3% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry more traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 6,732 crossings a day against 7,217 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 528 of 528 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
70.3% of Merced County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
371 of the 528 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 32.2% 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 8.6% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
STATE ROUTE 99 NB over BLACK RASCAL CANAL, built 1962, carries 25,500 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 44-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 296,215 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Merced County's bridges were built
528 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1910s 9
1910–1919
9 bridges
- 1920s 29
1920–1929
29 bridges
- 1930s 35
1930–1939
35 bridges
- 1940s 45
1940–1949
45 bridges
- 1950s 58
1950–1959
58 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
156 bridges
- 1970s 56
1970–1979
56 bridges
- 1980s 38
1980–1989
38 bridges
- 1990s 24
1990–1999
24 bridges
- 2000s 37
2000–2009
37 bridges
- 2010s 37
2010–2019
37 bridges
- 2020s 4
2020–2029
4 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1960s, when 156 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 29.5% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 55 to 64 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1967) matches the California average (1970).
How Merced County compares with California's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 California counties nearest Merced County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 8.3% Poor share is the 6th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1967 against a peer-group mean of 1965 is in line with the group.
Showing the 5 closest of 57 California counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sonoma County | 609 | 24.1% | 69% | 6.9% | 1967 |
| Tulare County | 589 | 42.4% | 54.2% | 3.4% | 1959 |
| Merced County (this page) | 528 | 32.2% | 59.5% | 8.3% | 1967 |
| Ventura County | 501 | 55.7% | 40.1% | 4.2% | 1969 |
| Shasta County | 492 | 47.6% | 49.4% | 3% | 1967 |
| Tehama County | 450 | 36.9% | 56.2% | 6.9% | 1961 |
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 Merced 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 Merced County, both outside California so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside CA (528 bridges here).
- LaSalle County, IL · 528 bridges
- Nueces County, TX · 528 bridges
- New Castle County, DE · 527 bridges
- Marathon County, WI · 530 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside CA (1967 here).
- Allegheny County, PA · avg 1967 · 1,294 bridges
- Suffolk County, MA · avg 1967 · 489 bridges
- Multnomah County, OR · avg 1967 · 473 bridges
- Le Flore County, OK · avg 1967 · 469 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
Good-condition bridges (170)
INTERSTATE 5 NB
GoodOver: ETCHEVERRY ROAD
10-MER-005-15.12, Merced, CA
Built 1971 Load: 42.8 t ADT: 20,750
Volta Road
GoodOver: San Luis Canal
1.6 mi S of SR 152, Merced, CA
Built 1968 Load: 43.1 t ADT: 50
Creek Road
GoodOver: San Luis Canal
0.7 MI S ALMOND DRIVE, Merced, CA
Built 1968 Load: 43.4 t ADT: 60
Canyon Road
GoodOver: San Luis Canal
2.8 MI S PIONEER ROAD, Merced, CA
Built 1968 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 260
Hilldale Ave
GoodOver: San Luis Canal
1.1 MI N OF SR 152, Merced, CA
Built 1968 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 50
SANTA FE DRIVE
GoodOver: BLACK RASCAL CREEK
0.28 MI NW OF SR 59, Merced, CA
Built 1953 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 10,016
COTTONWOOD RD
GoodOver: OUTSIDE CANAL
0.1 MI W OF WHITWORTH, Merced, CA
Built 1970 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 340
Billy Wright Road
GoodOver: San Luis Canal
0.3 mi SW of SR 152, Merced, CA
Built 1968 Load: 46.7 t ADT: 200
STATE ROUTE 99 NB
GoodOver: O STREET
10-MER-099-15.15-MER, Merced, CA
Built 1962 Load: 47.3 t ADT: 25,500
TAGLIO ROAD
GoodOver: OUTSIDE CNL & GARZAS CRK
0.6 MI WEST OF WHITWORTH, Merced, CA
Built 1974 Load: 48.0 t ADT: 200
WHITWORTH ROAD
GoodOver: CCID MAIN CANAL
0.1 MI N WORTHINGTON RD, Merced, CA
Built 1972 Load: 50.2 t ADT: 160
SANTA FE DRIVE
GoodOver: CANAL CREEK
0.12 MI NW OF AVENUE TWO, Merced, CA
Built 1985 Load: 51.2 t ADT: 10,676
CENTER AVENUE
GoodOver: OUTSIDE CANAL
0.3 MI N ALMOND DR, Merced, CA
Built 1973 Load: 51.5 t ADT: 551
TURLOCK RD
GoodOver: DRY CREEK
3 MI E/O OAKDALE RD, Merced, CA
Built 1975 Load: 53.1 t ADT: 490
SANTA FE AVENUE
GoodOver: MILES CREEK
0.35 M SE CHILDS AVE, Merced, CA
Built 1976 Load: 54.4 t ADT: 3,192
SANTA FE AVENUE
GoodOver: DUTCHMAN CREEK
0.8 MI NW BCHANAN HOLO RD, Merced, CA
Built 1974 Load: 57.0 t ADT: 476
FOURTH AVENUE
GoodOver: BRANCH OF EASTSIDE CANAL
0.25 MI W NORTHRUP ROAD, Merced, CA
Built 1968 Load: 62.2 t ADT: 150
WHITWORTH ROAD
GoodOver: GARZAS CREEK
0.1 MI S TAGLIO ROAD, Merced, CA
Built 1977 Load: 62.9 t ADT: 160
MINTURN ROAD
GoodOver: DUTCHMAN CREEK
0.4 MI S BUCHAN HOLOW RD, Merced, CA
Built 1974 Load: 64.5 t ADT: 1,613
N99-WB 16TH ST OFF
GoodOver: W140-N99 ON-RAMP
10-MER-099-13.90-MER, Merced, CA
Built 1962 Load: 99.8 t ADT: 1,450
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.