County profile · official public datasets

Buchanan County, MO

246 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 34.1% rated Good, 58.1% Fair, 7.7% Poor.

246
Public bridges
34.1%
Good condition
7.7%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Buchanan County posts a better-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.

Top 42%
lowest Poor share in state
7.7%
Poor-condition share
246
public highway bridges
1981
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.

Buchanan County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Buchanan County ranks #48 of 115 Missouri counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 7.7%). Buchanan County, Missouri contains 246 public highway bridges. Roughly 34.1% are rated “Good,” 58.1% “Fair,” and 7.7% “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

246

Public highway bridges in Buchanan County

Good condition

34.1%

84 of 246 rated 7-9

Fair condition

58.1%

143 of 246 rated 5-6

Poor condition

7.7%

19 of 246 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#48 of 115

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

Condition distribution

Share of 246 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
34.1% (84)
Fair
58.1% (143)
Poor
7.7% (19)

Buchanan County's Poor-condition bridges carry 64,751 vehicle crossings a day

That is 6.7% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 7.7% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 3,408 crossings a day against 1,931 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 246 of 246 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

31.7% of Buchanan County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

78 of the 246 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 34.1% 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 26.5% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

US 36 E over IS 229 CST 6TH ST IS, built 1951, carries 17,137 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 19-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 64,751 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Buchanan County's bridges were built

246 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1990s, when 47 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 19.1% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 25 to 34 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1981) matches the Missouri average (1979).

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

How Buchanan County compares with Missouri's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Missouri counties nearest Buchanan County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 7.7% Poor share is the 2nd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1981 against a peer-group mean of 1983 is in line with the group.

Showing the 5 closest of 114 Missouri counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Buchanan County and the 5 Missouri counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Gentry County 246 14.6%
Buchanan County (this page) 246 7.7%
Pettis County 243 11.1%
St. Louis city County 240 10%
Lafayette County 238 2.5%
DeKalb County 237 8.4%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside MO (246 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside MO (1981 here).

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

All 246 Good 84 Fair 143 Poor 19

Good-condition bridges (84)

RT H E

Good

Over: WOLFPEN CR

S 5 T 55 N R 33 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2011 Load: 39.6 t ADT: 421

RT P E

Good

Over: 3RD FK OF PLATTE R

S 28 T 58 N R 33 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2012 Load: 39.6 t ADT: 448

MO 116 E

Good

Over: BEE CR

S 24 T 55 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2012 Load: 39.6 t ADT: 899

S.E. MT MORIAH

Good

Over: MALDEN CR

S 30 T 56 N R 33 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1992 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 30

RP FRANCIS ST TO I

Good

Over: CST MAIN ST BNSF RR

S 8 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1979 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 649

US 59 S

Good

Over: MISSOURI RVR BNSF RR L

S 24 T 55 N R 38 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2010 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 6,968

RT Y S

Good

Over: BRANCH BEE CRK

S 19 T 55 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2023 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 436

US 169 S

Good

Over: CST EASTON RD BNSF RR

S 26 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1990 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 8,156

RT FF S

Good

Over: PIGEON CR

S 20 T 56 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1956 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 2,049

SE POSSUM HOL

Good

Over: TRIB OF PIGEON CR

S 30 T 56 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1991 Load: 41.4 t ADT: 35

SAXTON RD

Good

Over: JAMES BRANCH

S 25 T 57 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1991 Load: 42.3 t ADT: 35

COOK RD

Good

Over: 102 RVR

S 30 T 58 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2003 Load: 42.3 t ADT: 150

US 36 E

Good

Over: CST 11TH ST CST 12TH ST

S 17 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 42.3 t ADT: 11,000

N 2ND ST

Good

Over: ROYS BR

S 31 T 58 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2005 Load: 43.2 t ADT: 130

SE SAXTON RD

Good

Over: THIRD FK PLATTE RV

S 35 T 57 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 44.1 t ADT: 50

NE DAVIS RD

Good

Over: MUDDY CR

S 30 T 58 N R 33 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1993 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 40

S.E. 75TH RD

Good

Over: BR OF PLATTE RVR

S 8 T 56 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1992 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 25

S.E. 75TH RD

Good

Over: BR OF PLATTE RVR

S 8 T 56 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1991 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 25

SE AJAX RD

Good

Over: WHITEHEAD CR

S 34 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2002 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 150

YOUNG RD

Good

Over: WHITEHEAD CR

S 3 T 56 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2003 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 20

22ND ST S

Good

Over: WHITEHEAD CR

S 28 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1958 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 6,108

US 59 S

Good

Over: BLACKSNAKE CR

S 28 T 58 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 2,787

SW SAMPSON RD

Good

Over: CONTRARY CR

S 1 T 55 N R 36 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1998 Load: 45.9 t ADT: 25

MO 116 E

Good

Over: PLATTE RVR

S 26 T 55 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2004 Load: 45.9 t ADT: 673

COUNTY RD 135

Good

Over: THIRD FK PLATTE RV

S 33 T 58 N R 33 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 47.7 t ADT: 30

SE 145TH RD

Good

Over: JENKINS BRANCH

S 33 T 56 N R 33 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2021 Load: 47.7 t ADT: 100

SW NICHOLS RD

Good

Over: BR OF SUGAR CR

S 36 T 55 N R 37 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2017 Load: 48.6 t ADT: 15

THIRD ST

Good

Over: LOST CR

S 11 T 55 N R 37 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2006 Load: 51.3 t ADT: 150

SW RUARK RD

Good

Over: CONTRARY CR

S 1 T 55 N R 36 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 53.1 t ADT: 15

SE CO RD 125

Good

Over: JAMES BR

S 32 T 57 N R 33 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2020 Load: 54.0 t ADT: 35

US 36 E

Good

Over: LP 29

S 17 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 54.0 t ADT: 11,000

US 36 W

Good

Over: LP 29

S 17 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 54.0 t ADT: 10,813

SE 110TH RD

Good

Over: RILEY BR

S 1 T 56 N R 34 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 2020 Load: 54.9 t ADT: 35

US 36 W

Good

Over: CST 11TH ST CST 12TH ST

S 17 T 57 N R 35 W, Buchanan, MO

Built 1996 Load: 63.9 t ADT: 10,813

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

Related

Browse all → | Rankings →
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.