County profile · official public datasets

Harper County, KS

372 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 25% rated Good, 65.3% Fair, 9.7% Poor.

372
Public bridges
25%
Good condition
9.7%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Harper 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.

90th
of 104 on Poor share
9.7%
Poor-condition share
372
public highway bridges
1965
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.

Harper County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Harper County ranks #90 of 104 Kansas counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 9.7%). Harper County, Kansas contains 372 public highway bridges. Roughly 25% are rated “Good,” 65.3% “Fair,” and 9.7% “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

372

Public highway bridges in Harper County

Good condition

25%

93 of 372 rated 7-9

Fair condition

65.3%

243 of 372 rated 5-6

Poor condition

9.7%

36 of 372 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#90 of 104

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

Condition distribution

Share of 372 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
25% (93)
Fair
65.3% (243)
Poor
9.7% (36)

Harper County's Poor-condition bridges carry 3,726 vehicle crossings a day

That is 5.2% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 9.7% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 104 crossings a day against 552 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 372 of 372 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

66.7% of Harper County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

248 of the 372 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 25% 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 49.4% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

US160 HWY over SAND CREEK, built 1956, carries 1,840 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 36-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 3,726 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Harper County's bridges were built

372 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1930s, when 61 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 16.4% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 85 to 94 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year is 1965, 7 years older than the Kansas average of 1972.

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

How Harper County compares with Kansas's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Kansas counties nearest Harper County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 9.7% Poor share is the 6th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1965 against a peer-group mean of 1976 is 11 years older.

Showing the 5 closest of 103 Kansas counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Harper County and the 5 Kansas counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Kingman County 391 5.9%
Dickinson County 375 5.1%
Harvey County 372 7.3%
Harper County (this page) 372 9.7%
Saline County 369 1.9%
Nemaha County 359 9.5%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside KS (372 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside KS (1965 here).

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

All 372 Good 93 Fair 243 Poor 36

Good-condition bridges (93)

NW 40 RD

Good

Over: RUSH CREEK

4.0N 4.5W OF ANTHONY, Harper, KS

Built 2016 Load: 29.3 t ADT: 10

US160 HWY

Good

Over: EAST SAND CREEK DRAINAGE

0.59 MI E NJCT K2, Harper, KS

Built 1956 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 2,420

NE 40 RD

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK

4.8E 4.0N OF ANTHONY, Harper, KS

Built 2002 Load: 31.0 t ADT: 10

SE 10 AVE

Good

Over: BLUFF CREEK

2.0N 8.0W OF BLUFF CITY, Harper, KS

Built 2003 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 40

NW 130th Road

Good

Over: COTTONWOOD CREEK

7.0N 5.3W OF ATTICA, Harper, KS

Built 2001 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 10

NE 70 AVE

Good

Over: SAND CREEK

1.5S 1.0W OF DANVILLE, Harper, KS

Built 2006 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 10

NE 70 RD 10.0-DD.0

Good

Over: SAND CREEK

4.0N 2.0E OF FREEPORT, Harper, KS

Built 2008 Load: 32.8 t ADT: 10

SE 20 Ave

Good

Over: STREAM

0.2S 2.0E OF SPRING, Harper, KS

Built 1997 Load: 33.1 t ADT: 10

SW 90 Rd

Good

Over: COPPER CREEK

3.0W 1.5N MANCHESTER OKLA, Harper, KS

Built 1994 Load: 33.5 t ADT: 10

K-44 HWY

Good

Over: FALL CREEK DRAINAGE

.03 MI W OF SUMNER CO LN., Harper, KS

Built 2005 Load: 36.3 t ADT: 460

SE 50th RD

Good

Over: BLUFF CREEK

0.5N 1.0E OF BLUFF CITY, Harper, KS

Built 2018 Load: 36.5 t ADT: 30

K2 HWY

Good

Over: EAST SAND CREEK DRAINAGE

2.17 MI NE NJCT US160, Harper, KS

Built 1937 Load: 37.2 t ADT: 2,550

SW 70 AVE

Good

Over: STREAM

3.0N 1.0E OF WALDRON, Harper, KS

Built 2016 Load: 37.6 t ADT: 10

K-2 HWY

Good

Over: LITTLE SANDY CREEK

0.23 MI E BARBER COLN, Harper, KS

Built 2004 Load: 37.9 t ADT: 565

K2 HWY

Good

Over: EAST SPRING CREEK

4.75 MI NE NJCT US160, Harper, KS

Built 1937 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 2,550

K-2 HWY

Good

Over: BNSF RAILROAD

0.62 MI NE NJCT US-160, Harper, KS

Built 1992 Load: 39.0 t ADT: 2,480

SE 30 RD

Good

Over: ROCK CREEK

3.0S 3.0E OF ANTHONY, Harper, KS

Built 2002 Load: 39.8 t ADT: 80

LOCAL W.8-6.0

Good

Over: SPRING CREEK

2.0N 2.0W of DANVILLE, Harper, KS

Built 2013 Load: 39.9 t ADT: 10

NE 130th RD

Good

Over: STREAM

4.0N 4.0E OF DANVILLE, Harper, KS

Built 2006 Load: 40.1 t ADT: 20

CREEK RD (EE-24.9)

Good

Over: STREAM

2.5S 4.0E OF BLUFF CITY, Harper, KS

Built 2013 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 10

K2 HWY

Good

Over: CHIKASKIA RIVER

8.67 MI NE NJCT US160, Harper, KS

Built 1990 Load: 41.0 t ADT: 2,550

K-2 HWY

Good

Over: SAND CREEK

0.82 MI NE NJCT US-160, Harper, KS

Built 1992 Load: 42.0 t ADT: 2,480

K-14 HWY

Good

Over: SAND CREEK

6.42 MI N NJCT US160, Harper, KS

Built 1998 Load: 42.6 t ADT: 865

K-44 HWY

Good

Over: ROCK CREEK

2.4 MI E K-179/K-44 JCT, Harper, KS

Built 2004 Load: 42.6 t ADT: 785

SW 40th RD

Good

Over: SANDY CREEK

0.5N 4.2E OF CORWIN, Harper, KS

Built 1988 Load: 42.8 t ADT: 80

RS 977

Good

Over: SALTY CREEK

3.5S 0.6W OF CORWIN, Harper, KS

Built 1988 Load: 43.3 t ADT: 50

K2 HWY

Good

Over: CAMP CREEK

6.24 MI E BARBER CO LN, Harper, KS

Built 2015 Load: 44.1 t ADT: 605

K-44 HWY

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK

5.1 MI E K-179/K-44 JCT, Harper, KS

Built 2004 Load: 44.5 t ADT: 460

K-2 HWY

Good

Over: SPRING CREEK

0.70 MI W K-44 ANTHONY, Harper, KS

Built 1995 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 1,040

K-44 HWY

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK DRAINAGE

3.9 MI E K-179/K-44 JCT, Harper, KS

Built 2004 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 460

SW 100th RD

Good

Over: SANDY CREEK

1.6W OF WALDRON, Harper, KS

Built 1986 Load: 46.2 t ADT: 50

K-2 HWY

Good

Over: BIG SANDY CREEK

3.93 MI E BARBER COLN, Harper, KS

Built 1998 Load: 46.3 t ADT: 605

K-44 HWY

Good

Over: BLUFF CREEK DRAINAGE

.85 MI E K-179/K-44 JCT, Harper, KS

Built 2004 Load: 46.3 t ADT: 785

US160 HWY

Good

Over: RUSH CREEK

2.93 MI W SJCT K2, Harper, KS

Built 2017 Load: 47.3 t ADT: 1,242

US160 HWY

Good

Over: MID BRANCH BLUFF CREEK

10.78 MI E BARBER COLN, Harper, KS

Built 2017 Load: 47.6 t ADT: 1,470

US160 HWY

Good

Over: W BRANCH BLUFF CREEK

9.82 MI E BARBER COLN, Harper, KS

Built 2017 Load: 48.0 t ADT: 1,470

US160 HWY

Good

Over: RUSH CREEK DRG

13.25 MI E BARBER COLN, Harper, KS

Built 2017 Load: 50.2 t ADT: 1,242

US160 HWY

Good

Over: RUSH CREEK DRG

3.07 MI W SJCT K2, Harper, KS

Built 2017 Load: 50.2 t ADT: 1,242

K-2 HWY

Good

Over: EAST SAND CREEK DRAINAGE

0.20 MI NE NJCT US-160, Harper, KS

Built 1992 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 2,590

NW 140th RD

Good

Over: MIDDLE BRANCH BLUFF CRK

8.0N 0.8E OF ATTICA, Harper, KS

Built 2016 Load: 55.3 t ADT: 30

US160 HWY

Good

Over: SPRING CREEK

0.91 MI W SJCT K2, Harper, KS

Built 2017 Load: 55.7 t ADT: 1,242

SW 10 RD

Good

Over: SPRING CREEK

0.8W 1.0S OF ANTHONY, Harper, KS

Built 2019 Load: 56.4 t ADT: 10

SW 40 Rd

Good

Over: Trib of Bluff Creek

1.0S 4.5E OF SHOOK, Harper, KS

Built 2023 Load: 88.2 t ADT: 10

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

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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.