County profile · official public datasets

Frederick County, MD

486 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 43.2% rated Good, 54.1% Fair, 2.7% Poor.

486
Public bridges
43.2%
Good condition
2.7%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Frederick County posts a top-quartile lowest Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.

Top 25%
lowest Poor share in state
2.7%
Poor-condition share
486
public highway bridges
1971
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.

Frederick County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Frederick County ranks #6 of 24 Maryland counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 2.7%). Frederick County, Maryland contains 486 public highway bridges. Roughly 43.2% are rated “Good,” 54.1% “Fair,” and 2.7% “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

486

Public highway bridges in Frederick County

Good condition

43.2%

210 of 486 rated 7-9

Fair condition

54.1%

263 of 486 rated 5-6

Poor condition

2.7%

13 of 486 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#6 of 24

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

Condition distribution

Share of 486 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
43.2% (210)
Fair
54.1% (263)
Poor
2.7% (13)

Frederick County's Poor-condition bridges carry 17,033 vehicle crossings a day

That is 0.3% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 2.7% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 1,310 crossings a day against 7,809 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 486 of 486 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

47.5% of Frederick County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

231 of the 486 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 43.2% 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 39.6% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

SHOOKSTOWN ROAD over CARROLL CREEK, built 1911, carries 6,750 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 13-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 17,033 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Frederick County's bridges were built

486 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1980s, when 104 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 21.4% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 35 to 44 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1971) matches the Maryland average (1972).

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

How Frederick County compares with Maryland's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Maryland counties nearest Frederick County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 2.7% Poor share is the 2nd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1971 against a peer-group mean of 1975 is in line with the group.

Showing the 5 closest of 23 Maryland counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Frederick County and the 5 Maryland counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Prince George's County 576 3.1%
Montgomery County 515 4.9%
Frederick County (this page) 486 2.7%
Anne Arundel County 389 1.5%
Baltimore city County 374 8.6%
Howard County 309 5.8%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside MD (486 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside MD (1971 here).

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

All 486 Good 210 Fair 263 Poor 13

Good-condition bridges (210)

APPLES CHURCH ROAD

Good

Over: OWENS CREEK

1 MI S OF MUD COLLEGE RD, Frederick, MD

Built 1917 Load: 9.5 t ADT: 350

COVELL ROAD

Good

Over: LITTLE BENNETT CREEK

WEST OF THURSTON ROAD INT, Frederick, MD

Built 1930 Load: 10.4 t ADT: 36

HOOVERS MILL ROAD

Good

Over: OWENS CREEK

AT FRUSHOUR RD INT, Frederick, MD

Built 1887 Load: 10.4 t ADT: 59

E. CHURCH HILL RD

Good

Over: MIDDLE CREEK

AT MD RTE 17 INT, Frederick, MD

Built 1908 Load: 10.9 t ADT: 204

DIXON ROAD

Good

Over: BENNETT CREEK

0.4 MI S OF THURSTON RD, Frederick, MD

Built 1904 Load: 12.7 t ADT: 200

ST. MARKS ROAD

Good

Over: BROAD RUN

0.7 MILES SOUTH OF MD 383, Frederick, MD

Built 1900 Load: 15.0 t ADT: 196

CREAMERY ROAD

Good

Over: TOMS CREEK

0.4 MI S OF US RTE 15, Frederick, MD

Built 1928 Load: 20.0 t ADT: 263

RODDY ROAD

Good

Over: OWENS CREEK

0.37 MI E OF US RTE 15, Frederick, MD

Built 1856 Load: 20.9 t ADT: 1,170

REICHS FORD ROAD

Good

Over: BUSH CREEK

0.5 MI W OF IJAMSVILLE RD, Frederick, MD

Built 2020 Load: 21.1 t ADT: 1,015

LENHART ROAD

Good

Over: FISHING CREEK

0.5 MI E OLD FREDERICK RD, Frederick, MD

Built 1906 Load: 21.3 t ADT: 166

HARNEY ROAD

Good

Over: MONOCACY RIVER

AT CARROLL COUNTY LINE, Frederick, MD

Built 1989 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 815

MD 550

Good

Over: BRANCH OF FRIENDS CREEK

1.2 M S OF WASH CO LINE, Frederick, MD

Built 2004 Load: 24.5 t ADT: 1,471

WINCHESTER BOULEVA

Good

Over: TRIBUTARY OF TUSCARORA C

WEST OF HARVARD PLACE, Frederick, MD

Built 2002 Load: 27.2 t ADT: 350

REICHS FORD ROAD

Good

Over: BUSH CREEK

0.1 MI W OF IJAMSVILLE RD, Frederick, MD

Built 1909 Load: 27.7 t ADT: 817

MD 76

Good

Over: MARYLAND MIDLAND RR

0.18 MILE NORTH OF MD 77, Frederick, MD

Built 2001 Load: 28.1 t ADT: 901

CATOCTIN HOLLOW RD

Good

Over: LITTLE HUNTING CREEK

1.12 MI W OF US RTE 15, Frederick, MD

Built 1980 Load: 29.0 t ADT: 201

PETE WILES ROAD

Good

Over: LITTLE CATOCTIN CREEK

1.3 MI N OF MD RTE 17, Frederick, MD

Built 1973 Load: 29.5 t ADT: 485

UTICA DISTRICT PAR

Good

Over: TRIBUTARY OF FISHING CRE

WEST OF OLD FREDERICK RD, Frederick, MD

Built 2020 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 200

REELS MILL ROAD

Good

Over: BUSH CREEK

0.25 MI N OF BALL RD, Frederick, MD

Built 1975 Load: 30.8 t ADT: 1,282

MD 28

Good

Over: WASHINGTON RUN

1.05 MILES EAST OF US 15, Frederick, MD

Built 2008 Load: 31.3 t ADT: 6,272

IS 70 WBR

Good

Over: IS 270

0.19 M E OF BR NO 1013800, Frederick, MD

Built 1968 Load: 32.2 t ADT: 83,731

COPPERMINE ROAD

Good

Over: ISRAEL CREEK

0.3 MI EAST OF MD RTE 194, Frederick, MD

Built 1966 Load: 32.2 t ADT: 2,172

HESSONG BRIDGE RD

Good

Over: HUNTING CREEK

AT LAYMAN ROAD INTERSECTN, Frederick, MD

Built 1965 Load: 32.2 t ADT: 804

US 40 RAMP F(2)

Good

Over: ROCK CREEK

0.80 MI W OF FREDERICK, Frederick, MD

Built 1969 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 3,593

MD 17

Good

Over: CATOCTIN CREEK

0.15 MILE SOUTH OF US 40, Frederick, MD

Built 1989 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 7,835

MD 76

Good

Over: MOTTERS RUN

.49 M S OF FOUR POINTS RD, Frederick, MD

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 903

BALLENGER CREEK PI

Good

Over: PIKE BRANCH

0.27 MI S OF CRESTWOOD BD, Frederick, MD

Built 2003 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 14,501

CARRIAGE HILL DRIV

Good

Over: TRIBUTARY OF PETER PAN R

0.8 Mi N of Fingerboard R, Frederick, MD

Built 2004 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 580

BILL MOXLEY ROAD

Good

Over: BUSH CREEK

AT MD 144 INTERSECTION, Frederick, MD

Built 1973 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,017

MD 464

Good

Over: CATOCTIN CREEK

3.17 MILES EAST OF MD 17, Frederick, MD

Built 2010 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 4,040

MD 26

Good

Over: ISRAEL CREEK

0.66 MILE EAST OF MD 194, Frederick, MD

Built 2000 Load: 33.1 t ADT: 10,092

EXECUTIVE WAY

Good

Over: BALLENGER CREEK

0.1 MI WEST OF MD 85, Frederick, MD

Built 2007 Load: 33.1 t ADT: 6,345

MD 355

Good

Over: BENNETT CREEK

1.06 MILES SOUTH OF MD 80, Frederick, MD

Built 2022 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 9,500

BIG WOODS ROAD

Good

Over: BENNETT CREEK

0.35 MI N OF MD RTE 355, Frederick, MD

Built 2007 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 2,120

OPOSSUMTOWN PIKE

Good

Over: LITTLE TUSCARORA CREEK

0.2 MI W OF WILLOWBRK RD, Frederick, MD

Built 1975 Load: 34.5 t ADT: 1,783

BALL ROAD

Good

Over: PETER PAN RUN

1.7 MI W OF IJAMSVILLE RD, Frederick, MD

Built 1970 Load: 34.7 t ADT: 906

BOYERS MILL ROAD

Good

Over: LAKE LINGANORE

1.8 MI S OF GAS HOUSE PK, Frederick, MD

Built 2017 Load: 34.7 t ADT: 5,776

BRANDENBURG HOLLOW

Good

Over: MIDDLE CREEK

0.7 MI N OF STOTTLEMEYER, Frederick, MD

Built 1976 Load: 34.9 t ADT: 483

MONOCACY BOULEVARD

Good

Over: MONOCACY RIVER

0.4 MILES S OF MD 26, Frederick, MD

Built 2000 Load: 36.3 t ADT: 11,825

BILL MOXLEY ROAD

Good

Over: BRANCH OF BUSH CREEK

500 SOUTH OF WESTWIND DR, Frederick, MD

Built 1973 Load: 37.2 t ADT: 1,212

GAPLAND ROAD

Good

Over: BROAD RUN

0.85 MI WEST OF MD 383, Frederick, MD

Built 2007 Load: 37.6 t ADT: 960

CHRISTOPHERS CROSS

Good

Over: TRIBUTARY OF TUSCARORA C

WEST OF THOMAS JOHNSON DR, Frederick, MD

Built 2004 Load: 37.6 t ADT: 4,896

MD 17

Good

Over: MIDDLE CREEK

1.55 M N OF CROW ROCK RD, Frederick, MD

Built 2005 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 1,951

NEW DESIGN ROAD

Good

Over: BALLENGER CREEK

1.42 MI. SOUTH OF I-70, Frederick, MD

Built 1998 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 19,907

NEW LONDON ROAD

Good

Over: BENS BRANCH

0.2 MILES SW OF MD 75, Frederick, MD

Built 2005 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 1,882

MD 77

Good

Over: DOUBLE PIPE CREEK

ON CARROLL CO LINE, Frederick, MD

Built 1989 Load: 38.5 t ADT: 841

BALLENGER CREEK PI

Good

Over: BALLENGER CREEK

0.1 MI N OF LAMBERT DRIVE, Frederick, MD

Built 2003 Load: 38.5 t ADT: 2,462

SUNSHINE TRAIL RD

Good

Over: FRIENDS CREEK

0.12 MI N OF FRIENDS CR R, Frederick, MD

Built 1975 Load: 39.0 t ADT: 240

MONTEVUE LANE

Good

Over: TRIBUTARY 96

1.2 MI. W OF US 15, Frederick, MD

Built 1995 Load: 39.0 t ADT: 9,791

BOLIVAR COURT

Good

Over: BOLIVAR BRANCH

AT BOLIVAR RD INTERSECTN, Frederick, MD

Built 1994 Load: 39.5 t ADT: 35

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

Related

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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.