County profile · official public datasets

Cook County, IL

1,721 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 28.8% rated Good, 57.5% Fair, 13.8% Poor.

1,721
Public bridges
28.8%
Good condition
13.8%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Cook County pairs a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state with an older average build year than the state inventory.

88th
of 102 on Poor share
13.8%
Poor-condition share
1,721
public highway bridges
1969
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.

Cook County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Cook County ranks #88 of 102 Illinois counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 13.8%). Cook County, Illinois contains 1,721 public highway bridges. Roughly 28.8% are rated “Good,” 57.5% “Fair,” and 13.8% “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

1,721

Public highway bridges in Cook County

Good condition

28.8%

495 of 1,721 rated 7-9

Fair condition

57.5%

989 of 1,721 rated 5-6

Poor condition

13.8%

237 of 1,721 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#88 of 102

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

Condition distribution

Share of 1,721 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
28.8% (495)
Fair
57.5% (989)
Poor
13.8% (237)

Cook County's Poor-condition bridges carry 5,864,125 vehicle crossings a day

That is 10% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 13.8% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 24,743 crossings a day against 30,089 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 1,714 of 1,721 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

65.7% of Cook County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

1,130 of the 1,721 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 28.8% 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 4.4% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

I- 90 94 RYAN ELEV over CANAL TO STEWART STS, built 1962, carries 256,900 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 237-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 5,864,125 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Cook County's bridges were built

1,721 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1950s, when 446 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 25.9% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 65 to 74 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year is 1969, 10 years older than the Illinois average of 1979.

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

How Cook County compares with Illinois's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Illinois counties nearest Cook County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 13.8% Poor share is the 5th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1969 against a peer-group mean of 1981 is 12 years older.

Showing the 5 closest of 101 Illinois counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Cook County and the 5 Illinois counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Cook County (this page) 1,721 13.8%
Champaign County 727 8.7%
Will County 649 10.5%
McLean County 624 2.9%
Livingston County 579 8.3%
Iroquois County 570 14.4%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside IL (1,721 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside IL (1969 here).

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

All 1,721 Good 495 Fair 989 Poor 237

Good-condition bridges (495)

I- 90 94 NWB JFK

Good

Over: CALIFORNIA AVE

2.4 M NW IL 64, Cook, IL

Built 1958 Load: 61.2 t ADT: 98,150

57TH ST

Good

Over: I- 90 94 RYAN & CTA

0.2 M S 55TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 1962 Load: 61.6 t ADT: 550

I-90 WB Jayne Adam

Good

Over: Higgins Creek

1.2 Mi E. Ill Rte 83, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 61.9 t ADT: 160,700

I-90 EB

Good

Over: Higgins Creek

1.2 Mi E. Ill Rte 83, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 61.9 t ADT: 160,700

COTTAGE GROVE AVE

Good

Over: I- 94 BISHOP FORD

1.2 M SE I-57, Cook, IL

Built 1960 Load: 62.9 t ADT: 6,100

IL 83 (CAL SAG RD

Good

Over: TINLEY CREEK

AT 127TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 2022 Load: 63.2 t ADT: 24,900

IL 62 ALGONQUIN R

Good

Over: SALT CREEK

0.7 M E IL 53, Cook, IL

Built 1900 Load: 63.8 t ADT: 25,200

US 12 45 MANNHEIM

Good

Over: ADDISON CR

565 N of Lake St., Cook, IL

Built 2018 Load: 63.8 t ADT: 38,900

Lake Cook Rd

Good

Over: I-294 NB

2 Mi W of Ill 43, Cook, IL

Built 2008 Load: 64.5 t ADT: 29,800

Kostner Avenue

Good

Over: Stony Creek

0.20 MI N 123RD ST, Cook, IL

Built 1983 Load: 64.8 t ADT: 1,375

MIDWAY TERM. RAMPS

Good

Over: IL50 (CICERO AV)

.5M SO OF 55TH, Cook, IL

Built 1998 Load: 64.8 t ADT: 10,700

WENTWORTH AVE

Good

Over: I- 55 STEVENSON

0.6 M E I94, Cook, IL

Built 1964 Load: 66.1 t ADT: 6,700

MADISON ST

Good

Over: DES PLAINES RIVER

1.2 M W IL 43, Cook, IL

Built 2003 Load: 66.1 t ADT: 12,200

CENTRAL AV

Good

Over: TRIB "C" CAL SAG

0.3 M N 147TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 1997 Load: 66.7 t ADT: 5,300

I-294 NB

Good

Over: WOLF RD

0.2 M NW I55 P10, Cook, IL

Built 1958 Load: 66.7 t ADT: 69,950

KEAN AVE

Good

Over: MILL CREEK

0.4 M S OF IL 83, Cook, IL

Built 2002 Load: 67.1 t ADT: 225

WALNUT AVE.

Good

Over: W BRANCH OF DUPAGE

.6 M S/RTE 19, Cook, IL

Built 1979 Load: 67.4 t ADT: 2,600

I-90 EB Jayne Adam

Good

Over: Touhy Avenue

1.2 Mi W. US 45, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 68.0 t ADT: 160,700

I-90 WB

Good

Over: Touhy Avenue

1.2 Mi W. US 45, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 68.0 t ADT: 160,700

JOE ORR RD

Good

Over: IL 394

4.0 M S I-80, Cook, IL

Built 1954 Load: 68.4 t ADT: 8,750

IL 72 EB HIGGINS

Good

Over: I- 90 ADAMS TOLLWAY

1.5 M E of IL 59, Cook, IL

Built 2016 Load: 68.7 t ADT: 18,800

IL 72 WB (HIGGINS

Good

Over: I- 90 ADAMS TOLLWAY

1.5 M E of IL 59, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 68.7 t ADT: 18,800

I-290 EB CD-IL 110

Good

Over: WOLF RD

1 M W US 45, Cook, IL

Built 2001 Load: 68.7 t ADT: 28,300

WENTWORTH AVE

Good

Over: I- 80 94

2.8 M E OF IL 394, Cook, IL

Built 2004 Load: 68.7 t ADT: 7,650

HARRISON ST

Good

Over: I- 90 94 NB DAN RYAN

0.1 M S of I-290, Cook, IL

Built 2014 Load: 69.3 t ADT: 2,550

I- 94 SB BISHOP FO

Good

Over: I- 57 WB RMP FR I-94

0.4 M S 95TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 1960 Load: 70.0 t ADT: 89,750

US 30

Good

Over: RR - CN / EJ&E

0.16 M N of Sauk Tr, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 71.6 t ADT: 26,600

OHIO ST WB TO I94E

Good

Over: I- 94EB RMP 2 OHIOEB

.1M W OF I94, Cook, IL

Built 2014 Load: 73.5 t ADT: 16,500

I-290 EB CD-IL 110

Good

Over: HILLSIDE DR

0.7 M W US 12, Cook, IL

Built 2002 Load: 73.9 t ADT: 28,300

US 34 OGDEN AVE

Good

Over: DES PLAINES RIV

0.5 M W IL 43, Cook, IL

Built 1933 Load: 75.5 t ADT: 14,300

WESTERN AVE

Good

Over: BUTTERFIELD CREEK

0.4 N VOLLMER RD, Cook, IL

Built 1900 Load: 76.5 t ADT: 5,550

I-90 EB Jayne Adam

Good

Over: Higgins Road

0.5 Mi E. US 45, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 76.5 t ADT: 168,700

WATERSIDE DR

Good

Over: PARKING GARAGE

W. HARBOR COURT, Cook, IL

Built 2006 Load: 79.4 t ADT: 1,500

PALMER AVENUE

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK

.2 MI W 25TH AVE, Cook, IL

Built 1994 Load: 80.4 t ADT: 450

SERVICE RD

Good

Over: OGDEN AVE

EAST OF IL 50, Cook, IL

Built 1999 Load: 82.0 t ADT: 100

I- 94 SB TO I-55 W

Good

Over: HALSTED ST

NORTH SIDE OF I-55, Cook, IL

Built 2000 Load: 82.3 t ADT: 17,450

IL 1 (HALSTED ST

Good

Over: CALUMET RIVER

@ 146TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 2001 Load: 85.2 t ADT: 13,700

OHIO ST WB TO I94E

Good

Over: I- 94

0.24 M W OF GRAND AV, Cook, IL

Built 2014 Load: 86.5 t ADT: 16,500

EDENS FRT ROAD

Good

Over: SKOKIE RIVER

3.5 M N IL-58 P12, Cook, IL

Built 1993 Load: 87.8 t ADT: 1,100

GOVERNORS HWY-PULA

Good

Over: BUTTERFIELD CREEK

0.05 M S US 30, Cook, IL

Built 1985 Load: 89.1 t ADT: 20,000

RIDGELAND AVE.

Good

Over: TINLEY CREEK

0.25M.N.OF 143RD.ST., Cook, IL

Built 1931 Load: 89.1 t ADT: 14,500

I-90

Good

Over: Stream

0.5 Mi NW of Ill. 83, Cook, IL

Built 2016 Load: 97.2 t ADT: 147,300

I-90

Good

Over: POPLAR CREEK

0.3 M E IL-72, Cook, IL

Built 1958 Load: 97.2 t ADT: 141,600

I-90

Good

Over: Poplar Creek

2.5 Mi. E. Ill. 72, Cook, IL

Built 2016 Load: 97.2 t ADT: 154,300

I-294 SB to I-190

Good

Over: I-90 EB to I-294 SB

0.15 Mi S of I-90, Cook, IL

Built 1958 Load: 97.2 t ADT: 13,900

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.