Total bridges
90
Public highway bridges in Lake County
County profile · official public datasets
Lake County, MN
90 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 51.1% rated Good, 36.7% Fair, 12.2% Poor.
- 90
- Public bridges
- 51.1%
- Good condition
- 12.2%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Lake County posts a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across rated county bridge inventory.
- 86th
- of 87 on Poor share
- 12.2%
- Poor-condition share
- 90
- public highway bridges
- 1984
- 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.
Lake County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Lake County ranks #86 of 87 Minnesota counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 12.2%). Lake County, Minnesota contains 90 public highway bridges. Roughly 51.1% are rated “Good,” 36.7% “Fair,” and 12.2% “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
51.1%
46 of 90 rated 7-9
Fair condition
36.7%
33 of 90 rated 5-6
Poor condition
12.2%
11 of 90 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#86 of 87
Among Minnesota counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 90 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 51.1% (46)
Fair 36.7% (33)
Poor 12.2% (11)
Lake County's Poor-condition bridges carry 3,710 vehicle crossings a day
That is 3.8% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 12.2% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 337 crossings a day against 1,167 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 90 of 90 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
38.9% of Lake County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
35 of the 90 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 51.1% 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 80.9% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
MN 61 over MANITOU RIVER, built 1956, carries 3,000 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 11-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 3,710 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Lake County's bridges were built
90 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1920s 3
1920–1929
3 bridges
- 1940s 2
1940–1949
2 bridges
- 1950s
1950–1959
15 bridges
- 1960s 6
1960–1969
6 bridges
- 1970s
1970–1979
18 bridges
- 1980s
1980–1989
10 bridges
- 1990s 6
1990–1999
6 bridges
- 2000s
2000–2009
12 bridges
- 2010s
2010–2019
9 bridges
- 2020s
2020–2029
9 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1970s, when 18 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 20% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 45 to 54 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1984) matches the Minnesota average (1986).
How Lake County compares with Minnesota's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 Minnesota counties nearest Lake County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 12.2% Poor share is the 6th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1984 against a peer-group mean of 1985 is in line with the group.
Showing the 5 closest of 86 Minnesota counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swift County | 97 | 75.3% | 23.7% | 1% | 1993 |
| Aitkin County | 96 | 55.2% | 36.5% | 8.3% | 1985 |
| Kandiyohi County | 94 | 48.9% | 43.6% | 7.4% | 1980 |
| Lake County (this page) | 90 | 51.1% | 36.7% | 12.2% | 1984 |
| Cass County | 85 | 47.1% | 48.2% | 4.7% | 1985 |
| Waseca County | 83 | 28.9% | 62.7% | 8.4% | 1983 |
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 Lake 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 Lake County, both outside Minnesota so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside MN (90 bridges here).
- Greenlee County, AZ · 90 bridges
- Clay County, FL · 90 bridges
- Taylor County, FL · 90 bridges
- Monroe County, GA · 90 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside MN (1984 here).
- Duval County, FL · avg 1984 · 831 bridges
- El Paso County, CO · avg 1984 · 686 bridges
- Bell County, TX · avg 1984 · 660 bridges
- Steuben County, NY · avg 1984 · 627 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
Fair-condition bridges (33)
CR 122
FairOver: STEWART RIVER
0.1 MI N OF JCT CSAH 12, Lake, MN
Built 1974 Load: 9.8 t ADT: 144
TOMAHAWK ROAD
FairOver: ISLAND RIVER
17.1 MI ENE OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1985 Load: 21.4 t ADT: 3
CSAH 3
FairOver: SILVER CREEK
2.0 MI NE OF JCT TH 61, Lake, MN
Built 1985 Load: 25.4 t ADT: 580
CSAH 14
FairOver: PINE CREEK
5.7 MI NW OF JCT CSAH 2, Lake, MN
Built 1958 Load: 26.1 t ADT: 465
MN 61
FairOver: CONVEYOR TUNNEL
2.6 MI NE OF JCT CSAH 4, Lake, MN
Built 1978 Load: 26.1 t ADT: 4,217
CSAH 3
FairOver: WEST BEAVER RIVER
3.1 MI SW OF JCT CSAH 4, Lake, MN
Built 1963 Load: 27.3 t ADT: 260
MN 61
FairOver: BEAVER RIVER
IN BEAVER BAY, Lake, MN
Built 1958 Load: 27.5 t ADT: 4,217
TOMAHAWK ROAD
FairOver: LITTLE ISABELLA RIVER
7.0 MI E OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1967 Load: 28.2 t ADT: 42
CSAH 7
FairOver: MOOSE CREEK
1.9 MI N OF JCT CSAH 8, Lake, MN
Built 1981 Load: 28.4 t ADT: 101
FH 7 SPUR 933
FairOver: STONY RIVER
.15 MI S OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1984 Load: 29.2 t ADT: 50
MN 61
FairOver: CARIBOU RIVER
11.1 MI N OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1924 Load: 29.4 t ADT: 3,000
MN 61
FairOver: CONVEYER
2.8 MI NE OF JCT CSAH 4, Lake, MN
Built 1952 Load: 29.4 t ADT: 4,217
MN 61
FairOver: SPLIT ROCK RIVER
4.5 MI NE OF JCT CSAH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1958 Load: 29.4 t ADT: 3,875
CSAH 7
FairOver: E BR BAPTISM RIVER
6.2 MI NE OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1977 Load: 30.7 t ADT: 332
CSAH 3
FairOver: GOOSEBERRY RIVER
6.3 MI NE OF JCT CR 201, Lake, MN
Built 1959 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 144
CR 124
FairOver: STEWART RIVER
1.5 MI N OF JCT CSAH 12, Lake, MN
Built 1980 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 308
CSAH 9
FairOver: W BR KNIFE RIVER
2.2 MI W OF JCT TH 61, Lake, MN
Built 1970 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 744
CSAH 3
FairOver: WEST SPLIT ROCK RIVER
9.8 MI SW OF JCT CSAH 4, Lake, MN
Built 1970 Load: 32.4 t ADT: 260
CSAH 24
FairOver: SILVER CREEK
0.4 MI E OF JCT CSAH 2, Lake, MN
Built 1971 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 695
TOMAHAWK ROAD
FairOver: MITAWAN CREEK
3.6 MI W OF JCT FR 177, Lake, MN
Built 1968 Load: 33.7 t ADT: 50
CSAH 38
FairOver: KNIFE RIVER
0.1 MI NW OF JCT TH 61, Lake, MN
Built 1978 Load: 33.7 t ADT: 126
CSAH 16
FairOver: SILVER RAPIDS
1.5 MI SE OF JCT CR 62, Lake, MN
Built 1971 Load: 35.5 t ADT: 1,350
T 20
FairOver: GOOSEBERRY RIVER
2.2 MI SW OF JCT CSAH 3, Lake, MN
Built 1977 Load: 36.4 t ADT: 77
MN 1
FairOver: BIRCH LAKE DAM
9.8 MI SE OF ELY, Lake, MN
Built 1955 Load: 37.2 t ADT: 650
MN 61
FairOver: BAPTISM RIVER; PARK RD
1.1 MI SW OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1968 Load: 37.6 t ADT: 3,540
MN 61
FairOver: CROW CREEK
8.3 MI NE OF JCT CSAH 2, Lake, MN
Built 1968 Load: 38.7 t ADT: 4,763
SOUTH STONY ROAD
FairOver: STONY RIVER
3.0 MI SE OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1959 Load: 39.9 t ADT: 5
CSAH 7
FairOver: MANITOU RIVER
2.1 MI SW OF JCT CSAH 8, Lake, MN
Built 1976 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 110
SPRUCE ROAD
FairOver: FILSON CREEK
NO DATA ENTERED, Lake, MN
Built 1953 Load: 41.5 t ADT: 15
MN 1
FairOver: BAPTISM RIVER
2.8 MI N OF JCT TH 61, Lake, MN
Built 1992 Load: 42.1 t ADT: 881
T 260
FairOver: LITTLE ISABELLA RIVER
0.7 MI N OF JCT TH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1952 Load: 42.4 t ADT: 52
CR 124
FairOver: STEWART RIVER
0.2 MI W OF JCT CR 132, Lake, MN
Built 1976 Load: 51.9 t ADT: 370
MN 61
FairOver: GOOSEBERRY RIVER
0.3 MI NE OF JCT CSAH 1, Lake, MN
Built 1996 Load: 57.1 t ADT: 3,875
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.