Total bridges
248
Public highway bridges in Cherokee County
County profile · official public datasets
Cherokee County, IA
248 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 34.3% rated Good, 36.7% Fair, 29% Poor.
- 248
- Public bridges
- 34.3%
- Good condition
- 29%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Cherokee 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.
- 76th
- of 99 on Poor share
- 29%
- Poor-condition share
- 248
- public highway bridges
- 1968
- 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.
Cherokee County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Cherokee County ranks #76 of 99 Iowa counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 29%). Cherokee County, Iowa contains 248 public highway bridges. Roughly 34.3% are rated “Good,” 36.7% “Fair,” and 29% “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
34.3%
85 of 248 rated 7-9
Fair condition
36.7%
91 of 248 rated 5-6
Poor condition
29%
72 of 248 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#76 of 99
Among Iowa counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 248 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 34.3% (85)
Fair 36.7% (91)
Poor 29% (72)
Cherokee County's Poor-condition bridges carry 11,294 vehicle crossings a day
That is 10.7% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 29.1% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 157 crossings a day against 274 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 247 of 248 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
52% of Cherokee County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
129 of the 248 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 34.3% 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 31.2% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
W BLUFF ST over RAILROAD CREEK, built 1961, carries 3,529 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 72-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 11,294 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Cherokee County's bridges were built
248 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1900s
1900–1909
16 bridges
- 1910s
1910–1919
20 bridges
- 1920s
1920–1929
23 bridges
- 1930s 9
1930–1939
9 bridges
- 1940s 10
1940–1949
10 bridges
- 1950s 7
1950–1959
7 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
20 bridges
- 1970s
1970–1979
37 bridges
- 1980s
1980–1989
29 bridges
- 1990s
1990–1999
19 bridges
- 2000s
2000–2009
28 bridges
- 2010s
2010–2019
24 bridges
- 2020s 6
2020–2029
6 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1970s, when 37 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 14.9% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 45 to 54 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year is 1968, 11 years older than the Iowa average of 1979.
How Cherokee County compares with Iowa's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 Iowa counties nearest Cherokee County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 29% Poor share is the 5th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1968 against a peer-group mean of 1979 is 11 years older.
Showing the 5 closest of 98 Iowa counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carroll County | 249 | 48.6% | 44.6% | 6.8% | 1977 |
| Poweshiek County | 248 | 25% | 33.1% | 41.9% | 1974 |
| Cherokee County (this page) | 248 | 34.3% | 36.7% | 29% | 1968 |
| Jackson County | 246 | 26.4% | 56.5% | 17.1% | 1983 |
| Hardin County | 241 | 36.1% | 36.1% | 27.8% | 1981 |
| Iowa County | 241 | 37.3% | 43.6% | 19.1% | 1980 |
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 Cherokee 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 Cherokee County, both outside Iowa so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside IA (248 bridges here).
- Crawford County, AR · 248 bridges
- Lowndes County, MS · 248 bridges
- Herkimer County, NY · 248 bridges
- Rockland County, NY · 248 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside IA (1968 here).
- Montgomery County, PA · avg 1968 · 828 bridges
- San Joaquin County, CA · avg 1968 · 644 bridges
- Providence County, RI · avg 1968 · 476 bridges
- Imperial County, CA · avg 1968 · 444 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
Fair-condition bridges (91)
US 59
FairOver: LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
0.2 mi. S of SR C38, Cherokee, IA
Built 1973 Load: 26.3 t ADT: 5,500
FM 450TH ST
FairOver: BEAR CREEK
093412401, Cherokee, IA
Built 1966 Load: 26.6 t ADT: 319
IA 3
FairOver: FORK LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
2.5 mi E of Jct. IA #143, Cherokee, IA
Built 1979 Load: 26.9 t ADT: 3,410
FM- W AVE
FairOver: LITTLE MAPLE RIVER
090393501, Cherokee, IA
Built 1971 Load: 27.0 t ADT: 290
FM - 650TH ST
FairOver: BUFFALO CREEK
090423301, Cherokee, IA
Built 1973 Load: 27.1 t ADT: 350
LOCAL 420TH ST
FairOver: CREEK
093410601, Cherokee, IA
Built 1966 Load: 27.1 t ADT: 30
LOCAL- M AVE
FairOver: CREEK
090401802, Cherokee, IA
Built 1900 Load: 27.4 t ADT: 45
E. CEDAR ST
FairOver: RAILROAD CREEK
000000000, Cherokee, IA
Built 1941 Load: 27.8 t ADT: 565
LOCAL- N AVE
FairOver: BRANCH LITTLE SIOUX
090402002, Cherokee, IA
Built 1937 Load: 28.5 t ADT: 26
FM- 610TH ST
FairOver: PITCHER CREEK
090390901, Cherokee, IA
Built 1970 Load: 30.1 t ADT: 1,017
FM-SIMONSEN RD
FairOver: ROCK CREEK
090411005, Cherokee, IA
Built 1975 Load: 30.4 t ADT: 20
FM 580TH ST
FairOver: PERRY CREEK
091402901, Cherokee, IA
Built 1979 Load: 30.4 t ADT: 199
FM RIVER RD.
FairOver: PERRY CREEK
091402908, Cherokee, IA
Built 1973 Load: 30.4 t ADT: 748
FM L AVE
FairOver: BEAR CREEK
093412402, Cherokee, IA
Built 1979 Load: 30.6 t ADT: 219
FM - D AVE
FairOver: N PIERSON CREEK
090422702, Cherokee, IA
Built 1961 Load: 30.9 t ADT: 679
IA 3
FairOver: LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
1.5 mi. E of US 59, Cherokee, IA
Built 1960 Load: 31.1 t ADT: 3,230
US 59
FairOver: MILL CREEK
0.9 mi. N of jct. IA 3, Cherokee, IA
Built 1985 Load: 31.5 t ADT: 2,000
LOCAL 470TH ST
FairOver: W FK LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
093423401, Cherokee, IA
Built 1986 Load: 31.7 t ADT: 100
550TH ST
FairOver: FIDDLE CREEK
091420801, Cherokee, IA
Built 1954 Load: 31.8 t ADT: 15
FM 570TH ST
FairOver: WILLOW CREEK
091411901, Cherokee, IA
Built 1979 Load: 32.5 t ADT: 100
US 59
FairOver: CN RR
2.3 mi. S of Jct SR C38, Cherokee, IA
Built 1972 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,460
LOCAL- K AVE
FairOver: CREEK
090412602, Cherokee, IA
Built 2002 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 11
N AVE
FairOver: PERRY CREEK
091400802, Cherokee, IA
Built 2002 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 11
LOCAL-Y AVE.
FairOver: BR MAPLE RIVER
092391202, Cherokee, IA
Built 1982 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 20
LOCAL-C AVE.
FairOver: BRANCH FIDDLE CREEK
092422802, Cherokee, IA
Built 1981 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 50
FM- L AVE
FairOver: BRANCH LITTLE SIOUX RVR
090411302, Cherokee, IA
Built 1971 Load: 33.2 t ADT: 290
FM- 650TH ST
FairOver: STRATTON
090413301, Cherokee, IA
Built 1967 Load: 33.3 t ADT: 180
FM 580TH ST.
FairOver: LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
091402801, Cherokee, IA
Built 1981 Load: 35.0 t ADT: 350
580TH ST
FairOver: WILLOW CREEK
091413001, Cherokee, IA
Built 2015 Load: 36.3 t ADT: 26
FM- 610TH ST
FairOver: MAPLE RIVER
090390801, Cherokee, IA
Built 1995 Load: 41.7 t ADT: 1,017
US 59
FairOver: GREY CREEK OVERFLOW
0.2 mi. N SR C16, Cherokee, IA
Built 1986 Load: 45.5 t ADT: 1,460
FM- T AVE
FairOver: BRANCH MAPLE RIVER
090391702, Cherokee, IA
Built 1985 Load: 46.7 t ADT: 34
LOCAL
FairOver: PERRY CREEK
091402905, Cherokee, IA
Built 2007 Load: 48.0 t ADT: 20
FM 450TH ST
FairOver: LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
093392103, Cherokee, IA
Built 1988 Load: 49.3 t ADT: 419
IA 3
FairOver: MAPLE RIVER
0.6 mi. W of IA 7, Cherokee, IA
Built 1985 Load: 51.7 t ADT: 3,270
US 59
FairOver: GREY CREEK
1.1 mi. N of jct. SR C16, Cherokee, IA
Built 1986 Load: 52.6 t ADT: 1,460
C38/OLD 977
FairOver: LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
092403509, Cherokee, IA
Built 1982 Load: 52.6 t ADT: 1,547
US 59
FairOver: RAILROAD CREEK
1.3 mi. S of Jct. IA 3, Cherokee, IA
Built 1973 Load: 55.4 t ADT: 7,700
FM U AVE
FairOver: BRANCH LITTLE SIOUX
093390804, Cherokee, IA
Built 1966 Load: 59.0 t ADT: 131
FM- L AVE
FairOver: LITTLE SIOUX RIVER
090410106, Cherokee, IA
Built 1984 Load: 61.4 t ADT: 1,257
US 59
FairOver: COONLEY CREEK
2.3 mi. N of SR C44, Cherokee, IA
Built 1972 Load: 99.9 t ADT: 2,460
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.