Total bridges
129
Public highway bridges in Van Buren County
County profile · official public datasets
Van Buren County, MI
129 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 32.6% rated Good, 60.5% Fair, 7% Poor.
- 129
- Public bridges
- 32.6%
- Good condition
- 7%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Van Buren County posts a better-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.
- Top 31%
- lowest Poor share in state
- 7%
- Poor-condition share
- 129
- public highway bridges
- 1976
- 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.
Van Buren County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Van Buren County ranks #26 of 83 Michigan counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 7%). Van Buren County, Michigan contains 129 public highway bridges. Roughly 32.6% are rated “Good,” 60.5% “Fair,” and 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.
Good condition
32.6%
42 of 129 rated 7-9
Fair condition
60.5%
78 of 129 rated 5-6
Poor condition
7%
9 of 129 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#26 of 83
Among Michigan counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 129 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 32.6% (42)
Fair 60.5% (78)
Poor 7% (9)
Van Buren County's Poor-condition bridges carry 17,189 vehicle crossings a day
That is 2.9% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 7% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 1,910 crossings a day against 3,465 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 129 of 129 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
55% of Van Buren County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
71 of the 129 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 32.6% 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 50% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
M-40 over I-94, built 1960, carries 8,601 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 9-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 17,189 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Van Buren County's bridges were built
129 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1920s 1
1920–1929
1 bridges
- 1930s 5
1930–1939
5 bridges
- 1940s 7
1940–1949
7 bridges
- 1950s 11
1950–1959
11 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
36 bridges
- 1970s
1970–1979
18 bridges
- 1980s 12
1980–1989
12 bridges
- 1990s
1990–1999
15 bridges
- 2000s 9
2000–2009
9 bridges
- 2010s 14
2010–2019
14 bridges
- 2020s 1
2020–2029
1 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1960s, when 36 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 27.9% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 55 to 64 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1976) matches the Michigan average (1976).
How Van Buren County compares with Michigan's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 Michigan counties nearest Van Buren County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 7% Poor share is the 2nd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1976 against a peer-group mean of 1976 is in line with the group.
Showing the 5 closest of 82 Michigan counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Midland County | 139 | 26.6% | 56.1% | 17.3% | 1978 |
| St. Joseph County | 132 | 28.8% | 59.1% | 12.1% | 1979 |
| Van Buren County (this page) | 129 | 32.6% | 60.5% | 7% | 1976 |
| Montcalm County | 121 | 37.2% | 57.9% | 5% | 1977 |
| Ionia County | 119 | 32.8% | 58.8% | 8.4% | 1974 |
| Branch County | 118 | 24.6% | 54.2% | 21.2% | 1973 |
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 Van Buren 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 Van Buren County, both outside Michigan so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside MI (129 bridges here).
- Clay County, AL · 129 bridges
- Cross County, AR · 129 bridges
- Lake County, CA · 129 bridges
- Lincoln County, CO · 129 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside MI (1976 here).
- Marion County, IN · avg 1976 · 958 bridges
- Mohave County, AZ · avg 1976 · 641 bridges
- Comanche County, OK · avg 1976 · 593 bridges
- Prince George's County, MD · avg 1976 · 576 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
All bridges (129)
N PAW PAW STREET
GoodOver: PAW PAW RIVER
VILLAGE OF LAWRENCE, Van Buren, MI
Built 1994 Load: 48.3 t ADT: 5,367
MICHIGAN STREET
GoodOver: N BR PAW PAW RIVER
0.2 M W M-40 IN PAW PAW, Van Buren, MI
Built 1994 Load: 48.8 t ADT: 7,000
CR 380 20TH AVE
GoodOver: S BR BLACK RIVER
6.0 MI W OF BREEDSVILLE, Van Buren, MI
Built 2011 Load: 49.6 t ADT: 853
18TH AVE
GoodOver: TRIB OF S BR BLACK RIVER
0.5 MI WEST OF 49TH ST, Van Buren, MI
Built 2003 Load: 50.9 t ADT: 335
ST JOSEPH ST
GoodOver: BRUSH CREEK
VILLAGE OF LAWRENCE, Van Buren, MI
Built 2006 Load: 52.8 t ADT: 7,575
16TH AVE
GoodOver: CEDAR CREEK
4.0 MI S KIBBIE W OF 67ST, Van Buren, MI
Built 2001 Load: 53.1 t ADT: 206
5TH AVENUE
GoodOver: MENTHA DRAIN
0.5 MI E OF 2350 ST, Van Buren, MI
Built 2002 Load: 53.8 t ADT: 75
CR 668
GoodOver: BR OF DOWAGIAC CREEK
1.0 MI S OF DECATUR, Van Buren, MI
Built 1961 Load: 56.4 t ADT: 1,467
CR380 20TH AVE
GoodOver: CEDAR CREEK
0.25 MI EAST OF M-43, Van Buren, MI
Built 2015 Load: 58.3 t ADT: 1,925
52 ND STREET
GoodOver: BRUSH CREEK
0.8 MI S OF CR 365, Van Buren, MI
Built 1969 Load: 58.6 t ADT: 89
3750TH STREET
GoodOver: BRANDYWINE CREEK
0.2 MI SOUTH OF 36TH AVE, Van Buren, MI
Built 1997 Load: 60.3 t ADT: 127
5950 STREET
GoodOver: PAW PAW RIVER
1.0 MI N OF RED ARROW HWY, Van Buren, MI
Built 1974 Load: 60.6 t ADT: 708
I-94 EB
GoodOver: E BR OF PAW PAW RIVER
1.4 MI E OF M-40, Van Buren, MI
Built 1960 Load: 66.4 t ADT: 18,138
I-94 WB
GoodOver: E BR OF PAW PAW RIVER
1.4 MI E OF M-40, Van Buren, MI
Built 1960 Load: 70.6 t ADT: 18,138
36TH AVE
GoodOver: BRANDYWINE CREEK
500 W OF 3750TH ST, Van Buren, MI
Built 2019 Load: 72.9 t ADT: 75
CR 681
GoodOver: PAW PAW RIVER
1.25 MI N OF RED ARROW HW, Van Buren, MI
Built 1999 Load: 73.9 t ADT: 3,092
44TH AVENUE
GoodOver: PAW PAW RIVER
1.4 MI E OF 46TH ST, Van Buren, MI
Built 2001 Load: 76.8 t ADT: 126
CR 687
GoodOver: S BR BLACK RIVER
0.25 MI N OF M-43, Van Buren, MI
Built 1999 Load: 77.4 t ADT: 1,950
16TH AVE
GoodOver: S BR BLACK RIVER
3.0 MI S OF SOUTH HAVEN, Van Buren, MI
Built 2003 Load: 83.3 t ADT: 175
76TH STREET
GoodOver: DEERLICK CREEK
0.25 MI N OF BLUE STAR HY, Van Buren, MI
Built 1995 Load: 97.2 t ADT: 1,190
HAMILTON ROAD
PoorOver: BLACK RIVER
CITY OF BANGOR, Van Buren, MI
Built 1974 Load: 10.4 t ADT: 800
MAIN ST OVERPASS
PoorOver: AMTRAK RAILROAD
MATTAWAN MICHIGAN, Van Buren, MI
Built 1980 Load: 11.3 t ADT: 5,023
CR 665
PoorOver: PAW PAW RIVER
3 MI N OF PAW PAW, Van Buren, MI
Built 1969 Load: 17.5 t ADT: 458
8TH AVE
PoorOver: S BR BLACK RIVER
2.5 MI E OF SOUTH HAVEN, Van Buren, MI
Built 1967 Load: 18.8 t ADT: 705
40TH STREET
PoorOver: PAW PAW RIVER
2.7 MI SE OF GLENDALE, Van Buren, MI
Built 1970 Load: 21.4 t ADT: 780
2ND AVENUE
PoorOver: MENTHA DRAIN
0.3 MI E OF 2350 ST, Van Buren, MI
Built 1950 Load: 23.7 t ADT: 420
48TH AVENUE
PoorOver: ROGERS CREEK
0.2 MI EAST OF 82ND ST, Van Buren, MI
Built 1972 Load: 27.2 t ADT: 309
M-40
PoorOver: I-94
AT M-40, Van Buren, MI
Built 1960 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 8,601
82ND ST
PoorOver: ROGERS CREEK
50 FT S OF 46TH AVE, Van Buren, MI
Built 1970 Load: 55.4 t ADT: 93
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.