Total bridges
207
Public highway bridges in Washington County
County profile · official public datasets
Washington County, IA
207 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 39.6% rated Good, 44.4% Fair, 15.9% Poor.
- 207
- Public bridges
- 39.6%
- Good condition
- 15.9%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Washington County posts a better-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.
- Top 35%
- lowest Poor share in state
- 15.9%
- Poor-condition share
- 207
- public highway bridges
- 1980
- 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.
Washington County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Washington County ranks #35 of 99 Iowa counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 15.9%). Washington County, Iowa contains 207 public highway bridges. Roughly 39.6% are rated “Good,” 44.4% “Fair,” and 15.9% “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
39.6%
82 of 207 rated 7-9
Fair condition
44.4%
92 of 207 rated 5-6
Poor condition
15.9%
33 of 207 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#35 of 99
Among Iowa counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 207 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 39.6% (82)
Fair 44.4% (92)
Poor 15.9% (33)
Washington County's Poor-condition bridges carry 5,753 vehicle crossings a day
That is 2% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 16% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 174 crossings a day against 1,900 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 206 of 207 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
39.6% of Washington County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
82 of the 207 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 39.6% 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 28.7% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
FM over WILLIAMS CREEK, built 1936, carries 1,650 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 33-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 5,753 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Washington County's bridges were built
207 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1910s 4
1910–1919
4 bridges
- 1920s 13
1920–1929
13 bridges
- 1930s 4
1930–1939
4 bridges
- 1940s 2
1940–1949
2 bridges
- 1950s 17
1950–1959
17 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
30 bridges
- 1970s
1970–1979
19 bridges
- 1980s
1980–1989
24 bridges
- 1990s
1990–1999
47 bridges
- 2000s
2000–2009
22 bridges
- 2010s
2010–2019
20 bridges
- 2020s 5
2020–2029
5 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1990s, when 47 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 22.7% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 25 to 34 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1980) matches the Iowa average (1979).
How Washington County compares with Iowa's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 Iowa counties nearest Washington County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 15.9% Poor share is the 3rd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1980 against a peer-group mean of 1978 is in line with the group.
Showing the 5 closest of 98 Iowa counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Floyd County | 213 | 49.8% | 35.7% | 14.6% | 1984 |
| Howard County | 210 | 41.9% | 35.2% | 22.9% | 1984 |
| Montgomery County | 210 | 21% | 53.8% | 25.2% | 1973 |
| Shelby County | 207 | 36.2% | 54.1% | 9.7% | 1979 |
| Washington County (this page) | 207 | 39.6% | 44.4% | 15.9% | 1980 |
| Audubon County | 206 | 33.5% | 48.1% | 18.4% | 1968 |
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 Washington 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 Washington County, both outside Iowa so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside IA (207 bridges here).
- Marin County, CA · 207 bridges
- Las Animas County, CO · 207 bridges
- Richland County, LA · 207 bridges
- Atlantic County, NJ · 207 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside IA (1980 here).
- Tulsa County, OK · avg 1980 · 1,135 bridges
- Miami-Dade County, FL · avg 1980 · 1,057 bridges
- Pulaski County, AR · avg 1980 · 721 bridges
- McLennan County, TX · avg 1980 · 714 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
Fair-condition bridges (92)
297TH PLACE
FairOver: BUFF CREEK
074061203, Washington, IA
Built 1955 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 34
LOCAL
FairOver: CAMP CREEK
077083601, Washington, IA
Built 1954 Load: 16.0 t ADT: 161
FM
FairOver: SMITH CREEK
077092702, Washington, IA
Built 1952 Load: 17.1 t ADT: 70
LOCAL
FairOver: WEST FORK CROOKED CREEK
076082904, Washington, IA
Built 1956 Load: 17.3 t ADT: 45
IA 92
FairOver: DUTCH CREEK
0.5 MI. E Jct. SR V15, Washington, IA
Built 1923 Load: 18.0 t ADT: 1,780
LOCAL
FairOver: WILLIAMS CR
074063102, Washington, IA
Built 1972 Load: 18.0 t ADT: 40
LOCAL
FairOver: WILLIAMS CR
074063202, Washington, IA
Built 1972 Load: 18.0 t ADT: 30
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
076091602, Washington, IA
Built 1970 Load: 18.0 t ADT: 40
LOCAL
FairOver: CAMP CR
077083604, Washington, IA
Built 1974 Load: 18.0 t ADT: 140
LOCAL
FairOver: SM STREAM
077081204, Washington, IA
Built 1973 Load: 18.1 t ADT: 140
FM
FairOver: CEDAR CREEK
075083501, Washington, IA
Built 1962 Load: 18.8 t ADT: 120
FM
FairOver: DAVIS CREEK
076071101, Washington, IA
Built 1962 Load: 18.8 t ADT: 90
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: WEST FORK CROOKED CREEK
075081101, Washington, IA
Built 2008 Load: 19.0 t ADT: 50
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: CAMP CREEK
077072004, Washington, IA
Built 2007 Load: 19.2 t ADT: 11
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SMALL CREEK
074062205, Washington, IA
Built 1964 Load: 20.2 t ADT: 30
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
075072304, Washington, IA
Built 1950 Load: 21.7 t ADT: 60
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: WALNUT CREEK
074080405, Washington, IA
Built 1962 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 40
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: EAST WALNUT CREEK
074081404, Washington, IA
Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 50
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: BURR OAK CREEK
074093603, Washington, IA
Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 100
FM
FairOver: N. FORK LONG CREEK
076071903, Washington, IA
Built 1970 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 230
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
076091402, Washington, IA
Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 40
LOCAL
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
076091701, Washington, IA
Built 1967 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 15
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
077082203, Washington, IA
Built 1975 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 15
FM
FairOver: LIME CREEK
077082801, Washington, IA
Built 1964 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 60
LK DARLING ST PK
FairOver: HONEY CREEK
IN LAKE DARLING ST.PARK, Washington, IA
Built 1929 Load: 22.7 t
FM
FairOver: DAVIS CREEK
076070102, Washington, IA
Built 1953 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 520
FM
FairOver: WILLIAMS CREEK
074073602, Washington, IA
Built 1980 Load: 23.2 t ADT: 380
FM
FairOver: GOOSE CREEK
076061804, Washington, IA
Built 1983 Load: 24.5 t ADT: 60
LOCAL
FairOver: CROOKED CREEK
076092502, Washington, IA
Built 1987 Load: 24.5 t ADT: 40
FM
FairOver: HONEY CREEK
074091707, Washington, IA
Built 1969 Load: 24.7 t ADT: 50
FM
FairOver: CAMP CREEK
077072905, Washington, IA
Built 1968 Load: 24.7 t ADT: 120
FM
FairOver: WEST FORK CROOKED CREEK
074071303, Washington, IA
Built 1978 Load: 24.9 t ADT: 60
FM
FairOver: W. FORK CROOKED CREEK
076092702, Washington, IA
Built 1978 Load: 24.9 t ADT: 45
FM
FairOver: CROOKED CREEK
074073003, Washington, IA
Built 1987 Load: 25.1 t ADT: 270
FM
FairOver: GOOSE CREEK
076062402, Washington, IA
Built 1966 Load: 25.1 t ADT: 26
FM
FairOver: CLEMONS CREEK
075081002, Washington, IA
Built 1956 Load: 25.3 t ADT: 60
FM
FairOver: CAMP CR
077072805, Washington, IA
Built 1974 Load: 25.3 t ADT: 120
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SOUTH FORK LONG CREEK
075071102, Washington, IA
Built 1967 Load: 25.7 t ADT: 30
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SOUTH FORK LONG CREEK
075071401, Washington, IA
Built 1966 Load: 25.7 t ADT: 50
KIWI AVE
FairOver: CLEMONS CREEK
075081404, Washington, IA
Built 1971 Load: 25.7 t ADT: 100
FM
FairOver: INDIAN CREEK
075083106, Washington, IA
Built 1968 Load: 25.7 t ADT: 60
LOCAL
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
076083001, Washington, IA
Built 1969 Load: 25.7 t ADT: 34
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
077080201, Washington, IA
Built 1966 Load: 25.7 t ADT: 140
LARCH AVE
FairOver: CEDAR CREEK
075083604, Washington, IA
Built 1953 Load: 26.0 t ADT: 100
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: DAVIS CREEK
077063104, Washington, IA
Built 1956 Load: 26.0 t ADT: 71
FM
FairOver: NORTH FORK LONG CREEK
075060702, Washington, IA
Built 1969 Load: 27.2 t ADT: 100
CO RD W64
FairOver: DRAINAGE DITCH
074062206, Washington, IA
Built 1982 Load: 27.5 t ADT: 210
IA 22
FairOver: DRAINAGE DITCH
0.5 MI. W OF JCT. IA 1, Washington, IA
Built 1994 Load: 28.8 t ADT: 3,330
FM
FairOver: SMALL STREAM
076081901, Washington, IA
Built 1953 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 540
LOCAL ROAD
FairOver: DEER CREEK
077080403, Washington, IA
Built 1966 Load: 30.4 t ADT: 60
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.