Total bridges
395
Public highway bridges in Essex County
County profile · official public datasets
Essex County, MA
395 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 15.9% rated Good, 66.8% Fair, 17.2% Poor.
- 395
- Public bridges
- 15.9%
- Good condition
- 17.2%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Essex County posts a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.
- 13th
- of 13 on Poor share
- 17.2%
- Poor-condition share
- 395
- public highway bridges
- 1957
- 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.
Essex County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Essex County ranks #13 of 13 Massachusetts counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 17.2%). Essex County, Massachusetts contains 395 public highway bridges. Roughly 15.9% are rated “Good,” 66.8% “Fair,” and 17.2% “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
15.9%
63 of 395 rated 7-9
Fair condition
66.8%
264 of 395 rated 5-6
Poor condition
17.2%
68 of 395 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#13 of 13
Among Massachusetts counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 395 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 15.9% (63)
Fair 66.8% (264)
Poor 17.2% (68)
Essex County's Poor-condition bridges carry 2,590,672 vehicle crossings a day
That is 21.8% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 17.3% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry more traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 38,098 crossings a day against 20,809 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 394 of 395 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
73.4% of Essex County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
289 of the 394 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 15.9% 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 5% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
US 1 NEWBRPRT TPK over I 95 /ST128, built 1963, carries 128,520 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 68-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 2,590,672 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Essex County's bridges were built
394 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- pre-1900 30
Built before 1900
30 bridges
- 1900s 12
1900–1909
12 bridges
- 1910s 10
1910–1919
10 bridges
- 1920s 17
1920–1929
17 bridges
- 1930s 20
1930–1939
20 bridges
- 1940s 26
1940–1949
26 bridges
- 1950s
1950–1959
58 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
95 bridges
- 1970s 37
1970–1979
37 bridges
- 1980s 14
1980–1989
14 bridges
- 1990s 15
1990–1999
15 bridges
- 2000s 34
2000–2009
34 bridges
- 2010s 22
2010–2019
22 bridges
- 2020s 4
2020–2029
4 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1960s, when 95 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 24.1% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 55 to 64 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1957) matches the Massachusetts average (1961).
How Essex County compares with Massachusetts's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 Massachusetts counties nearest Essex County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 17.2% Poor share is the 6th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1957 against a peer-group mean of 1961 is in line with the group.
Showing the 5 closest of 12 Massachusetts counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berkshire County | 450 | 34.7% | 57.6% | 7.8% | 1961 |
| Hampden County | 428 | 17.1% | 75.5% | 7.5% | 1956 |
| Essex County (this page) | 395 | 15.9% | 66.8% | 17.2% | 1957 |
| Bristol County | 384 | 30.2% | 63.3% | 6.5% | 1962 |
| Norfolk County | 343 | 23.6% | 71.4% | 5% | 1962 |
| Franklin County | 314 | 34.4% | 54.5% | 11.1% | 1964 |
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 Essex 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 Essex County, both outside Massachusetts so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside MA (395 bridges here).
- Creek County, OK · 395 bridges
- Humboldt County, CA · 396 bridges
- Nodaway County, MO · 396 bridges
- Gage County, NE · 394 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside MA (1957 here).
- Labette County, KS · avg 1957 · 349 bridges
- Greenwood County, KS · avg 1957 · 235 bridges
- Greer County, OK · avg 1957 · 230 bridges
- Lincoln County, KS · avg 1957 · 225 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
All bridges (395)
HWY TOPSFIELD RD
FairOver: I 95
2.1 MI N IPSWICH RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1974 Load: 44.8 t ADT: 10,400
HWY MAIN ST
FairOver: US 1 BROADWAY
.5 MILES NORTH ESSEX ST, Essex, MA
Built 1937 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 26,400
HWY WARREN ST
FairOver: RR ABANDONED
NEXT TO WARREN STREET CAF, Essex, MA
Built 1946 Load: 45.1 t ADT: 2,900
I 95 /ST128
FairOver: I 95 RAMP J
1.7 MI S LOWELL STREET, Essex, MA
Built 1988 Load: 45.1 t ADT: 106,900
HWY ENDICOTT RD
FairOver: I 95
.25 MI N IPSWICH RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1976 Load: 45.7 t ADT: 7,700
I 93
FairOver: HWY PELHAM ST
1.8 MI N MERRIMAC RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1959 Load: 45.8 t ADT: 70,705
ST 28 BROADWAY
FairOver: WATER SPICKET RIVER
.6 MI S ST213, Essex, MA
Built 1912 Load: 46.5 t ADT: 22,000
HWY BOSTON ST
FairOver: WATER SAUGUS RIVER
AT SAUGUS LINE, Essex, MA
Built 2008 Load: 46.8 t ADT: 10,300
HWY HAMPSHIRE RD
FairOver: WATER SPICKET RIVER
.1 MILE EAST I 93, Essex, MA
Built 1959 Load: 47.0 t ADT: 4,900
ST 28 SB/N MAIN ST
FairOver: I 495 RAMP D
1.8 MI N ANDOVER CENTER, Essex, MA
Built 1962 Load: 47.3 t ADT: 13,707
ST128
FairOver: ST 97 CABOT ST
500 WEST OF DODGE ST, Essex, MA
Built 1947 Load: 47.7 t ADT: 76,198
ST213 EB
FairOver: WATER SPICKET RIVER
OVER SPICKET RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1959 Load: 48.6 t ADT: 35,000
ST107 BRIDGE ST
FairOver: RR MBTA (STORAGE TUN)
.32 KM N SALEM CENTER, Essex, MA
Built 1949 Load: 48.7 t ADT: 24,000
ST213 WB
FairOver: TR METHUEN RAIL TRAIL
.2 MI W ST28, Essex, MA
Built 1959 Load: 48.8 t ADT: 33,600
HWY PEABODY ST
FairOver: WATER BOSTON BROOK
1 MI. SW. OF BOXFORD, Essex, MA
Built 1957 Load: 48.8 t ADT: 3,233
HWY HIGH ST
FairOver: WATER POWWOW RIVER
.5 MI N OF TOWN CENTER, Essex, MA
Built 1995 Load: 49.0 t ADT: 3,400
ST 28 S MAIN ST
FairOver: ST125 ANDOVER BYPASS
3.8 MI S ANDOVER CENTER, Essex, MA
Built 1958 Load: 49.4 t ADT: 16,900
ST 28 BROADWAY
FairOver: WATER SPICKET RIVER
.9 MI S ST213, Essex, MA
Built 1850 Load: 49.4 t ADT: 11,300
I 95 SB
FairOver: HWY SCOTLAND RD
2.1 MI N PARKER RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1952 Load: 49.7 t ADT: 63,600
I 95 NB
FairOver: HWY SCOTLAND RD
2.1 MI N PARKER RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1976 Load: 50.0 t ADT: 63,600
HWY CHANDLER RD
FairOver: I 495 SB
CHANDLER RD AT I-495, Essex, MA
Built 1962 Load: 50.9 t ADT: 8,800
I 95 SB
FairOver: HWY LOWELL ST
.2 MI E US1, Essex, MA
Built 1974 Load: 51.1 t ADT: 60,000
ST113 HIGH ST
FairOver: OTHER CLIPR RAIL TRAIL
.1 MI W US1, Essex, MA
Built 1907 Load: 51.6 t ADT: 23,600
I 95
FairOver: I 95 RAMP FROM US 1 NB
.1 MI E US1, Essex, MA
Built 1986 Load: 51.7 t ADT: 76,700
I 95 SB/ST128 SB
FairOver: HWY SUMMER ST
0.5 MI S OF US-1, Essex, MA
Built 1940 Load: 51.8 t ADT: 55,400
ST213 WB
FairOver: WATER SPICKET RIVER
OVER SPICKET RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1959 Load: 51.8 t ADT: 35,300
HWY CHESTNUT ST
FairOver: RR MBTA/BMRR
.5 MI N LYNN TRAIN STATIO, Essex, MA
Built 1913 Load: 51.9 t ADT: 4,750
I 95 NB
FairOver: HWY LOWELL ST
.2 MI E US1, Essex, MA
Built 1974 Load: 52.2 t ADT: 49,900
ST286 MAIN ST
FairOver: I 95
1 MI S NEW HAMPSHIRE STAT, Essex, MA
Built 1967 Load: 52.4 t ADT: 3,800
ST128
FairOver: WATER PORTER RIVER
1000 FT N OF ST-35, Essex, MA
Built 1941 Load: 53.0 t ADT: 73,898
ST 1 A/HIGH RD
FairOver: WATER PARKER RIVER
0.25 MI S OF NEWMAN RD, Essex, MA
Built 2009 Load: 53.6 t ADT: 5,172
HWY GREEN ST
FairOver: RR MBTA/BMRR
.1 MI N LYNN TRAIN STATIO, Essex, MA
Built 1913 Load: 54.0 t ADT: 2,350
HWY FAYETTE ST
FairOver: RR MBTA/BMRR
.9 MI N LYNN TRAIN STATIO, Essex, MA
Built 1913 Load: 55.8 t ADT: 2,200
ST286 COLLINS RD
FairOver: RR BMRR
AT NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE LI, Essex, MA
Built 1850 Load: 55.9 t ADT: 11,000
US 1 NB/NEWBURY
FairOver: HWY LOWELL ST
.1 MI N RR TRACKS, Essex, MA
Built 1948 Load: 59.3 t ADT: 23,230
HWY MAIN ST
FairOver: WATER POWWOW RIVER
0.1MI N MERRIMAC RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1890 Load: 59.9 t ADT: 8,336
ST128
FairOver: ST 62 ELLIOT ST
JCT ST-62 & ST-128, Essex, MA
Built 1940 Load: 61.2 t ADT: 72,449
ST150 MAIN ST
FairOver: WATER POWWOW RIVER
IN CENTER OF TOWN, Essex, MA
Built 1850 Load: 61.3 t ADT: 12,700
I 95 NB/ST128 NB
FairOver: HWY WALNUT ST
2.3 KM S US1, Essex, MA
Built 1940 Load: 61.9 t ADT: 61,300
US 1 SB/NEWBURY
FairOver: HWY LOWELL ST
.1 MI N OF RR TRACKS, Essex, MA
Built 1948 Load: 61.9 t ADT: 19,815
HWY BALMORAL ST
FairOver: WATER SHAWSHEEN RIVER
. 1 MILE EAST ST 28, Essex, MA
Built 1924 Load: 62.3 t ADT: 2,450
ST 28 S BROADWAY
FairOver: WATER SOUTH CANAL
.16 KM S MERRIMAC RIVER, Essex, MA
Built 1939 Load: 62.3 t ADT: 17,786
HWY CRAFTS RD
FairOver: ST128
.48 KM S ANNISQUAM RIV, Essex, MA
Built 1948 Load: 65.8 t ADT: 2,300
US 1 SB/NEWBRY ST
FairOver: ST 62 MAPLE ST
1.6 MI N OF ST-114, Essex, MA
Built 1950 Load: 67.2 t ADT: 19,815
HWY WALDNGFLD RD
FairOver: RR MBTA
AT RR TRACKS, Essex, MA
Built 1927 Load: 68.0 t ADT: 800
HWY E HAVERHILL
FairOver: WATER SPICKET RIVER
0.4 KM SW OF PROSPECT ST, Essex, MA
Built 2012 Load: 69.0 t ADT: 11,379
I 95 NB/ST128 NB
FairOver: HWY SUMMER ST
0.5 MI S OF US-1, Essex, MA
Built 1940 Load: 70.5 t ADT: 55,400
ST 28 N MAIN ST
FairOver: RR MBTA/BMRR
.4 MI N ANDOVER CENTER, Essex, MA
Built 1929 Load: 71.3 t ADT: 22,800
HWY STANDLEY ST
FairOver: ST128
1.2 MILES S GRAPEVINE RD., Essex, MA
Built 1952 Load: 71.8 t ADT: 2,844
ST128
FairOver: HWY ACCESS RD
.3 MI S ST114, Essex, MA
Built 1958 Load: 75.5 t ADT: 18,100
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.