County profile · official public datasets

Kennebec County, ME

188 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 19.1% rated Good, 67.6% Fair, 13.3% Poor.

188
Public bridges
19.1%
Good condition
13.3%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Kennebec County pairs a better-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state with an older average build year than the state inventory.

Top 44%
lowest Poor share in state
13.3%
Poor-condition share
188
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.

Kennebec County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Kennebec County ranks #7 of 16 Maine counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 13.3%). Kennebec County, Maine contains 188 public highway bridges. Roughly 19.1% are rated “Good,” 67.6% “Fair,” and 13.3% “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

188

Public highway bridges in Kennebec County

Good condition

19.1%

36 of 188 rated 7-9

Fair condition

67.6%

127 of 188 rated 5-6

Poor condition

13.3%

25 of 188 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#7 of 16

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

Condition distribution

Share of 188 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
19.1% (36)
Fair
67.6% (127)
Poor
13.3% (25)

Kennebec County's Poor-condition bridges carry 84,771 vehicle crossings a day

That is 8.8% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 13.3% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 3,391 crossings a day against 4,724 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 188 of 188 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

74.5% of Kennebec County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

140 of the 188 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 19.1% 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 20% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

WESTERN AV over INTERSTATE 95 NB & SB, built 1955, carries 16,934 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 25-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 84,771 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Kennebec County's bridges were built

188 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1950s, when 53 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 28.2% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 65 to 74 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year is 1965, 5 years older than the Maine average of 1970.

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

How Kennebec County compares with Maine's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Maine counties nearest Kennebec County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 13.3% Poor share is the 4th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1965 against a peer-group mean of 1971 is 6 years older.

Showing the 5 closest of 15 Maine counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Kennebec County and the 5 Maine counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
York County 236 9.3%
Aroostook County 229 10.5%
Kennebec County (this page) 188 13.3%
Somerset County 173 23.7%
Androscoggin County 135 10.4%
Franklin County 128 21.9%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside ME (188 bridges here).

Similar average build year

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

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

All bridges (188)

ALFOND CONNECTOR

Good

Over: I-95 NORTHBOUND

INTERCHANGE 113, Kennebec, ME

Built 2005 Load: 49.6 t ADT: 4,867

CASTLE ISLAND RD

Good

Over: LONG POND

50 W OF BELGRADE TL, Kennebec, ME

Built 2023 Load: 52.5 t ADT: 1,395

MIDDLE RD

Good

Over: FIELDS BROOK

3.5 MI SO TOWNLINE, Kennebec, ME

Built 2018 Load: 53.8 t ADT: 1,780

MAINE AV

Good

Over: COBBOSSEE STREAM

0.2 MI S OF JCT RTE US201, Kennebec, ME

Built 2019 Load: 57.0 t ADT: 8,555

COBBOSSEE RD

Good

Over: JOCK STREAM

1.0MI ELY OF SANBORN RD, Kennebec, ME

Built 2011 Load: 60.3 t ADT: 1,118

WILSON POND RD

Good

Over: WILSON STREAM

0.7 MI NW RTE. 202, Kennebec, ME

Built 1993 Load: 60.3 t ADT: 765

POND RD

Good

Over: ECHO LAKE

2 MI NO TOWNLINE, Kennebec, ME

Built 2019 Load: 62.2 t ADT: 860

LIBBY HILL RD

Good

Over: MESSALONSKEE STREAM

.1 MI S JCT ROUTE 11, Kennebec, ME

Built 1997 Load: 63.8 t ADT: 5,070

BLAIR RD

Good

Over: RIGGS BROOK

0.5 MI NE RT 201 100, Kennebec, ME

Built 1960 Load: 64.5 t ADT: 159

BLINN HILL RD

Good

Over: PLAMER BROOK

2.5 MI S RT 194, Kennebec, ME

Built 2016 Load: 64.8 t ADT: 251

RIVERSIDE DR

Good

Over: RIGGS BROOK

3.2 MI SO TOWNLINE, Kennebec, ME

Built 2010 Load: 64.8 t ADT: 9,253

MAIN ST

Good

Over: OUTLET STREAM

2 MI S TOWNLINE, Kennebec, ME

Built 2005 Load: 73.5 t ADT: 2,407

WEST RD/FERRIN RD

Good

Over: I-95

0.165 mi N of Howards, Kennebec, ME

Built 1956 Load: 77.4 t ADT: 391

BLAKE HILL RD

Poor

Over: HOPKINS STREAM

.25 MI SE RT 41, Kennebec, ME

Built 1950 Load: 2.7 t ADT: 147

MARSTON RD

Poor

Over: MAINE CENTRAL RAILROAD

.05 MI S JCT COUNTY RD, Kennebec, ME

Built 1928 Load: 8.7 t ADT: 807

EAST SCHOOL ST

Poor

Over: MESSALONSKEE STR

0.1 MI NW ALPINE ST, Kennebec, ME

Built 1950 Load: 8.7 t ADT: 767

PLEASANT ST

Poor

Over: SEBASTICOOK RIVER

0.1 MI E OF RTE 11&100, Kennebec, ME

Built 1936 Load: 9.4 t ADT: 1,218

BOG RD

Poor

Over: FIFTEEN MILE STREAM

0.1 MI NE JCT E BENTON RD, Kennebec, ME

Built 1956 Load: 10.4 t ADT: 134

S FREEDOM RD

Poor

Over: 15 MILE STREAM

0.9 MI SE OF HUSSEY RD, Kennebec, ME

Built 1933 Load: 13.3 t ADT: 525

CUSHNOC ROAD

Poor

Over: SEVEN MILE STREAM

.8 MI NW JCT US 201, Kennebec, ME

Built 1918 Load: 13.6 t ADT: 151

BUKER RD

Poor

Over: BUKER POND OUTLET

0.6 MI SE JCT OAK HILL RD, Kennebec, ME

Built 1950 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 1,131

HALLOWELL LITCHFIE

Poor

Over: COBBOSSEE STREAM

LITCHFIELD-W GARD TL, Kennebec, ME

Built 1964 Load: 23.7 t ADT: 1,230

SPRING ST

Poor

Over: KENNEBEC RIVER

US 201 OVER KENN RIV, Kennebec, ME

Built 1936 Load: 23.7 t ADT: 8,829

POND RD

Poor

Over: WHITTEN STREAM (NORTH)

1.5 MI S TOWNLINE, Kennebec, ME

Built 1931 Load: 24.3 t ADT: 1,867

W RIVER RD

Poor

Over: TOWN FARM BROOK

0.8 MI S TOWNLINE, Kennebec, ME

Built 1917 Load: 25.3 t ADT: 2,844

WAUGAN RD

Poor

Over: WILSON STREAM

1.2 MI N RT 135, Kennebec, ME

Built 1980 Load: 25.6 t ADT: 1,182

GARLAND RD

Poor

Over: PATTEE POND BROOK

0.1 MI SW BENTON TL, Kennebec, ME

Built 1921 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 1,075

WATER STREET

Poor

Over: BOND BROOK

0.25 MI N OF BRIDGE ST., Kennebec, ME

Built 1854 Load: 33.4 t ADT: 8,861

MOUNT VERNON AV

Poor

Over: BOND BROOK

0.3 MI N OF BRIDGE STREET, Kennebec, ME

Built 1934 Load: 36.0 t ADT: 13,526

WESTERN AV

Poor

Over: INTERSTATE 95 NB & SB

1.6 MI W OF JCT RTE 201, Kennebec, ME

Built 1955 Load: 36.0 t ADT: 16,934

HALLOWELL RD

Poor

Over: OUTLET OF WOODBURY POND

1.9 MI NLY RTES 9 & 126, Kennebec, ME

Built 1938 Load: 36.6 t ADT: 1,640

I 95 SB

Poor

Over: WEBB ROAD

1.4 MI N OF SIDNEY TL, Kennebec, ME

Built 1959 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 15,250

LYONS ROAD

Poor

Over: I-95 NORTHBOUND

0.5 MI W OF JCT RTE 104, Kennebec, ME

Built 1958 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 1,709

RICE RIPS RD

Poor

Over: INTERSTATE 95 NB & SB

4.5 MI N TOWNLINE, Kennebec, ME

Built 1959 Load: 41.8 t ADT: 2,726

CHOATE RD

Poor

Over: W BR SHEEPSCOT RIVER

0.7 MI E RT 32, Kennebec, ME

Built 1962 Load: 43.7 t ADT: 206

RIVER RD

Poor

Over: CARRABASSETT STREAM

0.2 MI N OF JCT RTE 23, Kennebec, ME

Built 1930 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 1,331

BASSETT RD

Poor

Over: MILE BROOK

0.4 MI S RT 137, Kennebec, ME

Built 1911 Load: 73.5 t ADT: 622

MILL HILL RD

Poor

Over: SEVEN MILE STREAM

0.3 MI W RTE 201, Kennebec, ME

Built 1991 Load: 99.9 t ADT: 59
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.