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)

31ST STREET

Good

Over: LAKE SHORE DRIVE

3100 S 628 E, Cook, IL

Built 2003 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 7,550

E.126TH PLACE

Good

Over: INDIAN CREEK

12600 S & 3000 E, Cook, IL

Built 2002 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 6,850

COLUMBUS DR

Good

Over: 11TH ST UNDERPASS

1100 S. Columbus Dr., Cook, IL

Built 2004 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 24,300

MS-6003 McCormick

Good

Over: Pedestrian Walkway

1100S 300E, Cook, IL

Built 2004 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,000

ACCESS RD CIRCULAR

Good

Over: PARKING ENTRANCE RD

ORD ENTRANCE BRIDGE, Cook, IL

Built 1961 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 6,500

Cambridge Drive

Good

Over: W. Br. DuPage River

0.1Mi E of Braintree, Cook, IL

Built 2014 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 425

Syracuse Drive

Good

Over: W. Br. DuPage River

.1M E. of Cornell, Cook, IL

Built 2014 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 225

WACKER DRIVE

Good

Over: LOWER WACKER DRIVE

360 W.-150N.TO 100S., Cook, IL

Built 2011 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 14,300

WACKER DRIVE

Good

Over: LOWER WACKER DRIVE

360 W.-100S.TO 400S., Cook, IL

Built 2012 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 9,450

WALNUT LANE

Good

Over: TRIB OF POPLAR CREEK

450 FT S IL 58, Cook, IL

Built 2013 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,900

COMMONWEALTH AVENU

Good

Over: FLAGG CREEK

0.4MI S OF 47TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 1990 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 425

53RD STREET

Good

Over: FLAGG CREEK

.05MI E OF COMNWELTH, Cook, IL

Built 1990 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 550

S. BRAINTREE DRIVE

Good

Over: W. BRANCH DUPAGE RIV

0.5 MI. W. WISE ROAD, Cook, IL

Built 1961 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 2,450

Franklin Ave

Good

Over: Silver Creek

0.17 MI W I-294, Cook, IL

Built 2021 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 4,900

Orchard Place

Good

Over: Willow Creek

250 ft N of IL 72, Cook, IL

Built 2019 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,075

Harmon Blvd

Good

Over: Poplar Creek

N Sec 017 T41N R10E, Cook, IL

Built 1990 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,800

ASBURY AV

Good

Over: CTA SKOKIE SWFT

0.2 MI N HOWARD, Cook, IL

Built 2006 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 7,250

191ST STREET

Good

Over: LANSING DRN DITCH

0.01M W. BURNHAM AVE, Cook, IL

Built 2013 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,250

Leon Cook/River 71

Good

Over: BN SF RR

HODGKINS, Cook, IL

Built 2002 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 2,650

198 ST

Good

Over: LANSING DRN DTCH

0.01 M E ILL 83 P2, Cook, IL

Built 1973 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 800

MATTESON AV

Good

Over: BUTTERFIELD CR

0.5Mi S Vollmer Rd, Cook, IL

Built 2009 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,050

MS-1090 (15th Ave.

Good

Over: Silver Creek

300 Ft. S. of IL-64, Cook, IL

Built 2018 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 3,450

KEELER AVENUE

Good

Over: NATALIE CREEK

0.12 MI N 147TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 2011 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 400

KARLOV AVENUE

Good

Over: NATALIE CREEK

0.12 MI N 147TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 2011 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 725

KEYSTONE AVENUE

Good

Over: NATALIE CREEK

0.12 MI N 147TH ST, Cook, IL

Built 2011 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 350

Long Run Drive

Good

Over: Long Run Creek

0.5 MI E ILL RTE 7, Cook, IL

Built 2004 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 2,000

BASSWOOD ST

Good

Over: TRIB of W BR SALT CR

NE Sec 7 T42N R10E, Cook, IL

Built 1989 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 325

FAU-190 Balmoral A

Good

Over: FAP-330 Mannheim Rd

0.5 MI W I-294, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 15,100

VINCENNES AVE

Good

Over: CAL UNION DRAIN DITC

1000 SO OF US-6, Cook, IL

Built 1949 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 4,150

163RD ST.

Good

Over: 76TH AV DITCH

.5M W OF IL43, Cook, IL

Built 2002 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 450

WILLOW LANE

Good

Over: MIDLOTHIAN CREEK

.06MI E RIDGELAND AV, Cook, IL

Built 2007 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 100

GENEVA DR

Good

Over: MCDONALD CREEK

0.4 MI E WHEELING RD, Cook, IL

Built 1998 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 525

WILLOW RD

Good

Over: MCDONALD CREEK

0.4 MI S PALATINE RD, Cook, IL

Built 1998 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,550

RAUPP BLVD

Good

Over: BUFFALO CREEK

0.3M S.LAKE COOK P25, Cook, IL

Built 2015 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,800

PFINGSTEN ROAD

Good

Over: NO BR CHICAGO RIVER

200FT S LAKE COOK RD, Cook, IL

Built 1988 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 13,100

MS-9999 Wolf Rd Ac

Good

Over: Buffalo Creek

0.8 MI W of Wolf Rd, Cook, IL

Built 2013 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 300

I-290

Good

Over: DRAIN DTCH

0.2 M N BIESTERFIELD, Cook, IL

Built 1970 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 157,300

ADAMS ST

Good

Over: I- 90 94 JFK

0.2 M N I-290, Cook, IL

Built 2021 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 6,900

Roselle Rd.

Good

Over: I-90

2.7 M W IL 53, Cook, IL

Built 2016 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 31,000

IL 43 NB (HARLEM)

Good

Over: RR MWRDGC

0.2 M N OF I-55, Cook, IL

Built 2022 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 35,500

US 12 45 MANNHEIM

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK

.33 M S OF GRAND AVE, Cook, IL

Built 1977 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 41,700

BRIDGE ST

Good

Over: CHI MET SAN CANAL

0.5 M W GREEN BAYP6, Cook, IL

Built 1908 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 4,550

KEDZIE AVE

Good

Over: N LAG MARQUETTE PARK

3.5 M N US 12 20, Cook, IL

Built 1933 Load: 33.4 t ADT: 16,700

KEDZIE AVE

Good

Over: S LAG MARQUETTE PARK

3.2 M N US 12 20, Cook, IL

Built 1933 Load: 33.4 t ADT: 16,700

US14 NW HWY

Good

Over: WELLER CREEK

.25 E OF SEEGER RD, Cook, IL

Built 1968 Load: 33.4 t ADT: 10,900

SB IL394 RAMP

Good

Over: THORN CREEK

SB 394 TO WB 294/I80, Cook, IL

Built 2007 Load: 33.4 t ADT: 10,700

Plainfield Rd.

Good

Over: I-294

1 Mi. N US 66, Cook, IL

Built 2022 Load: 33.4 t ADT: 9,650

I-294 SB

Good

Over: FLAG CR NORTH

0.9 M S US 34 P10, Cook, IL

Built 1958 Load: 33.4 t ADT: 86,900

US 6 (159TH ST)

Good

Over: I-294 TRI-STATE TOLL

0.3 M W Western Ave, Cook, IL

Built 2018 Load: 33.7 t ADT: 29,700

IL 68 (DUNDEE RD)

Good

Over: SPRING CREEK

1.8 M W IL 59, Cook, IL

Built 2009 Load: 33.7 t ADT: 7,450

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.