County profile · official public datasets

Washington County, LA

285 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 44.2% rated Good, 44.2% Fair, 11.6% Poor.

285
Public bridges
44.2%
Good condition
11.6%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Washington County posts a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.

38th
of 64 on Poor share
11.6%
Poor-condition share
285
public highway bridges
1979
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 #38 of 64 Louisiana counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 11.6%). Washington County, Louisiana contains 285 public highway bridges. Roughly 44.2% are rated “Good,” 44.2% “Fair,” and 11.6% “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

285

Public highway bridges in Washington County

Good condition

44.2%

126 of 285 rated 7-9

Fair condition

44.2%

126 of 285 rated 5-6

Poor condition

11.6%

33 of 285 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#38 of 64

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

Condition distribution

Share of 285 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
44.2% (126)
Fair
44.2% (126)
Poor
11.6% (33)

Washington County's Poor-condition bridges carry 27,114 vehicle crossings a day

That is 4.5% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 11.7% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 822 crossings a day against 2,176 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 282 of 285 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

49.8% of Washington County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

142 of the 285 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 44.2% 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 11.8% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

Penton road over MILE BR., built 1970, carries 3,200 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 27,114 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

285 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1960s, when 70 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 24.6% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 55 to 64 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1979) matches the Louisiana average (1982).

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

How Washington County compares with Louisiana's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Louisiana counties nearest Washington County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 11.6% Poor share is the 4th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1979 against a peer-group mean of 1982 is in line with the group.

Showing the 5 closest of 63 Louisiana counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Washington County and the 5 Louisiana counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
St. Landry County 317 7.6%
Natchitoches County 313 15.3%
Washington County (this page) 285 11.6%
Acadia County 282 8.9%
Bossier County 270 14.8%
Vermilion County 261 11.1%

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 Louisiana so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside LA (285 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside LA (1979 here).

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

All bridges (285)

LA0450

Fair

Over: S CARSON CREEK

1.6 M N OF LA 10, Washington, LA

Built 1958 Load: 9.1 t ADT: 1,162

Mt. Pleasant Rd

Fair

Over: CREEK

3.1 MI.WEST.OF.LA. 1, Washington, LA

Built 1970 Load: 9.1 t ADT: 1,170

LA0438

Fair

Over: HAY CREEK

LA0438, Washington, LA

Built 1959 Load: 10.0 t ADT: 659

LA0439

Fair

Over: BENS CREEK

10.6 Mi SE of LA 10, Washington, LA

Built 1955 Load: 10.0 t ADT: 1,235

Thigpen Rd

Fair

Over: BRIDGE OVER BOGALUSA CR.

.94 MI W OF HWY 45, Washington, LA

Built 1999 Load: 10.0 t ADT: 469

LA1055

Fair

Over: SILVER CREEK

LA1055, Washington, LA

Built 1957 Load: 11.8 t ADT: 94

LA1075

Fair

Over: SALS BRANCH

0.5 M S OF LA 1074, Washington, LA

Built 1942 Load: 12.5 t ADT: 2,917

BENS FORD ROAD

Fair

Over: BOGUE LUSA CREEK

0.27 MI N OF LA.60, Washington, LA

Built 2016 Load: 13.6 t ADT: 300

LA1071

Fair

Over: CREEK

4.9 M SE OF LA 21, Washington, LA

Built 1954 Load: 13.6 t ADT: 498

Van Buren St

Fair

Over: COBURN CREEK

0.1.MI. N.OF LUCERNE, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 13.6 t ADT: 780

LA0438

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.3 M W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1967 Load: 14.5 t ADT: 666

BALLTOWN ROAD

Fair

Over: CREEK

1.2 M E OF LA 21, Washington, LA

Built 1959 Load: 15.4 t ADT: 1,692

LA0450

Fair

Over: TCHEFUNCTA RIVER

1.7 M S OF LA 10, Washington, LA

Built 1943 Load: 16.3 t ADT: 1,162

LA0436

Fair

Over: MUSTER GROUND C

0.9 M W OF LA 21, Washington, LA

Built 1958 Load: 16.3 t ADT: 1,306

Bens Ford Rd

Fair

Over: ADAMS CREEK PIPE

0.5 MI N. OF HWY LA 439, Washington, LA

Built 1995 Load: 16.8 t ADT: 1,259

LA0430

Fair

Over: DRAIN

1.2 M NE OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1968 Load: 17.0 t ADT: 4,643

LA0450

Fair

Over: GORDON CREEK

LA0450, Washington, LA

Built 1953 Load: 18.1 t ADT: 1,162

LA0436

Fair

Over: DRAIN

3.9 M W OF LA 62, Washington, LA

Built 1957 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 1,148

LA0060

Fair

Over: BERRYS CREEK

2.8 Mi NE of LA 1073, Washington, LA

Built 1966 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 749

LA0436

Fair

Over: CREEK

0.3 M NE OF LA 21, Washington, LA

Built 1954 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 1,306

Rio Grande St

Fair

Over: WATER BRANCH

0.1 MI S OF HWY. 10, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 8,450

LA0424

Fair

Over: DRAIN

1.0 M N OF LA 438, Washington, LA

Built 1969 Load: 20.0 t ADT: 1,873

Harvey Rd

Fair

Over: HAYS CREEK

2.05 MI. N OF HWG. 430, Washington, LA

Built 1981 Load: 20.1 t ADT: 688

LA0436

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.1 M NE OF LA 21, Washington, LA

Built 1939 Load: 20.4 t ADT: 1,306

LA0436

Fair

Over: BURCHS CREEK

LA0436, Washington, LA

Built 1957 Load: 20.9 t ADT: 2,434

LA0436

Fair

Over: LAWRENCE CREEK

LA0436, Washington, LA

Built 1957 Load: 20.9 t ADT: 1,148

LA0436

Fair

Over: MILLER CREEK

1.8 M W OF LA 62, Washington, LA

Built 1957 Load: 20.9 t ADT: 1,148

LA0436

Fair

Over: THOMAS BRANCH

LA0436, Washington, LA

Built 1957 Load: 20.9 t ADT: 1,148

LA0424

Fair

Over: DRAIN

1.2 M N OF LA 438, Washington, LA

Built 1969 Load: 20.9 t ADT: 1,873

LA0010

Fair

Over: PUSHEPATAPPA

2.5 MILES EAST OF LA 21, Washington, LA

Built 1998 Load: 21.4 t ADT: 570

LA0038

Fair

Over: DRAIN

1.3 M W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1952 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,706

LA0038

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.9 MI W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1949 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,706

LA0038

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.8 M W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1949 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,706

LA0038

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.6 M W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1949 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,706

LA0038

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.5 M W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1949 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,706

LA0038

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.3 M W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1949 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,706

Choctaw Rd

Fair

Over: BOGUE CHITTO R.

2.2 MI.N.OF LA 1082, Washington, LA

Built 1979 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 610

Willis Ave.

Fair

Over: BOGUE LUSA CREEK

.5 MI. W OF HWY. 60, Washington, LA

Built 1962 Load: 22.4 t ADT: 15,320

LA0021

Fair

Over: CREEK

2.5 M N OF LA 436, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,719

LA0021

Fair

Over: SCARBOROUGHS CREEK

1.7 M SW OF LA 438, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,719

LA0021

Fair

Over: SCARBOROUGHS CREEK

1.1 M SW OF LA 438, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,719

LA0021

Fair

Over: CREEK

0.7 M S OF LA 438, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,719

LA0021

Fair

Over: ARDS CREEK

LA0021, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 2,646

LA0016

Fair

Over: BERRYS CREEK

LA0016, Washington, LA

Built 1969 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,137

LA0025

Fair

Over: MILE BRANCH

LA0025, Washington, LA

Built 1963 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,117

LA0025

Fair

Over: CALICO BRANCH

1.3 M NW OF LA 10, Washington, LA

Built 1963 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,117

LA0025

Fair

Over: HAYS CREEK

LA0025, Washington, LA

Built 1963 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,117

LA0438

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.2 M W OF LA 25, Washington, LA

Built 1967 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 666

LA0439

Fair

Over: DRAIN

4.1 M W OF LA 60, Washington, LA

Built 1955 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,235

LA0438

Fair

Over: SILVER CREEK

LA0438, Washington, LA

Built 1960 Load: 23.6 t ADT: 688
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.