County profile · official public datasets

Saunders County, NE

506 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 27.7% rated Good, 64% Fair, 8.3% Poor.

506
Public bridges
27.7%
Good condition
8.3%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Saunders County pairs a higher-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state with an older average build year than the state inventory.

56th
of 88 on Poor share
8.3%
Poor-condition share
506
public highway bridges
1972
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.

Saunders County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Saunders County ranks #56 of 88 Nebraska counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 8.3%). Saunders County, Nebraska contains 506 public highway bridges. Roughly 27.7% are rated “Good,” 64% “Fair,” and 8.3% “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

506

Public highway bridges in Saunders County

Good condition

27.7%

140 of 506 rated 7-9

Fair condition

64%

324 of 506 rated 5-6

Poor condition

8.3%

42 of 506 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#56 of 88

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

Condition distribution

Share of 506 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
27.7% (140)
Fair
64% (324)
Poor
8.3% (42)

Saunders County's Poor-condition bridges carry 1,895 vehicle crossings a day

That is 0.7% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 8.3% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 45 crossings a day against 1,134 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 506 of 506 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

52.2% of Saunders County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

264 of the 506 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 27.7% 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 14.8% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

COLL 7841 over STREAM, built 1965, carries 280 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 42-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 1,895 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Saunders County's bridges were built

506 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1930s, when 102 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 20.2% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 85 to 94 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year is 1972, 5 years older than the Nebraska average of 1977.

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

How Saunders County compares with Nebraska's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Nebraska counties nearest Saunders County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 8.3% Poor share is the 6th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1972 against a peer-group mean of 1982 is 10 years older.

Showing the 5 closest of 87 Nebraska counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Saunders County and the 5 Nebraska counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Douglas County 509 2.9%
Saunders County (this page) 506 8.3%
Buffalo County 459 1.7%
Platte County 433 4.8%
Cuming County 402 2%
Gage County 394 8.1%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside NE (506 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside NE (1972 here).

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

All 506 Good 140 Fair 324 Poor 42

Good-condition bridges (140)

ASHLAND ROAD

Good

Over: NORTH FORK ROCK CREEK

4E US77 LANCASTER CL, Saunders, NE

Built 1979 Load: 9.0 t ADT: 20

COUNTY HIGHWAY

Good

Over: DUCK CREEK

1S 1.2W OF COLON, Saunders, NE

Built 1971 Load: 10.0 t ADT: 25

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: WAHOO CREEK

.5N 2.3W OF MEMPHIS, Saunders, NE

Built 1976 Load: 10.0 t ADT: 10

COUNTY ROAD K

Good

Over: JOHNSON CREEK

1.3S 2.1E OF MEAD, Saunders, NE

Built 1950 Load: 13.0 t ADT: 50

COLL 7838

Good

Over: SALT CREEK

.5S 2W OF ASHLAND, Saunders, NE

Built 1983 Load: 15.0 t ADT: 145

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: SAND CREEK

3S 1E OF MORSE BLUFF, Saunders, NE

Built 1935 Load: 15.0 t ADT: 50

MAPLE STREET

Good

Over: NORTH OAK CREEK TRIB

WCL VALPARAISO, Saunders, NE

Built 1995 Load: 16.0 t ADT: 200

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: STREAM

2.9S 2.5W OF YUTAN, Saunders, NE

Built 1950 Load: 17.0 t ADT: 100

COLL 7843

Good

Over: STREAM

2S OF ITHACA, Saunders, NE

Built 1935 Load: 19.0 t ADT: 220

US6

Good

Over: BNSF RR 073-005-K

1.1NE OF ASHLAND, Saunders, NE

Built 1990 Load: 19.0 t ADT: 4,920

ROAD 12

Good

Over: MOSQUITO CREEK TRIB

3.6S 1E OF ITHACA, Saunders, NE

Built 1988 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 30

ROAD 11

Good

Over: WAHOO CREEK TRIB

JCT US77/N63 6.2E 2.2S, Saunders, NE

Built 1995 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 255

FAS 3390

Good

Over: STREAM

JCT N66/N79 1S 7.6E, Saunders, NE

Built 1975 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 890

COUNTY HIGHWAY

Good

Over: STREAM

2.3W OF TOUHY, Saunders, NE

Built 2000 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 20

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: STREAM

3.3S 1W OF MORSE BLUFF, Saunders, NE

Built 1990 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 55

FAS 3427

Good

Over: STREAM

WJCT US6/N63 1E 8.1N, Saunders, NE

Built 1985 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 1,310

SILVER STREET

Good

Over: SALT CREEK

ASHLAND SILVER @ 10TH, Saunders, NE

Built 2019 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 3,140

N92

Good

Over: STREAM

1W WESTON, Saunders, NE

Built 1939 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 3,950

N92

Good

Over: JOHNSON CREEK

1E MEAD, Saunders, NE

Built 1931 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 5,225

N109

Good

Over: STREAM

0N COLON, Saunders, NE

Built 1955 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 2,295

N109

Good

Over: STREAM

1E CEDAR BLUFFS, Saunders, NE

Built 1955 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 3,095

N109

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK

2E CEDAR BLUFFS, Saunders, NE

Built 1955 Load: 22.0 t ADT: 3,095

ROAD 12

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK TRIB

.7S 1E OF ITHACA, Saunders, NE

Built 2017 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 70

FAS 3455

Good

Over: SAND CREEK

JCT N92/S-78E 11N, Saunders, NE

Built 1985 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 160

TOWNSHIP ROAD 19

Good

Over: MILLER BRANCH CREEK

1.2S 2W OF WAHOO, Saunders, NE

Built 1950 Load: 24.0 t ADT: 40

COUNTY HIGHWAY

Good

Over: STREAM

4E 3.5S CEDAR BLUFFS, Saunders, NE

Built 1997 Load: 24.0 t ADT: 50

ROAD R

Good

Over: SILVER CREEK

JCT US77/N64 3W, Saunders, NE

Built 2018 Load: 24.0 t ADT: 205

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: UPPER CLEAR CREEK

.9N .7W OF WANN, Saunders, NE

Built 2005 Load: 24.0 t ADT: 10

COUNTY RD M

Good

Over: STREAM

1.7W OF WANAHOO DAM, Saunders, NE

Built 2022 Load: 25.0 t ADT: 50

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: STREAM

1W 1.2N OF ASHLAND, Saunders, NE

Built 2002 Load: 25.0 t ADT: 20

COUNTY ROAD 6

Good

Over: UPPER CLEAR CREEK

.2W 1.6N OF YUTAN, Saunders, NE

Built 2023 Load: 25.0 t ADT: 30

ROAD S

Good

Over: DUCK CREEK

.5N 2.5E OF PRAGUE, Saunders, NE

Built 2022 Load: 26.0 t ADT: 50

ROAD 26

Good

Over: WAHOO CREEK N FK

3.6 W OF MALMO, Saunders, NE

Built 2019 Load: 26.0 t ADT: 150

COUNTY ROAD H

Good

Over: STREAM

1.6E OF ITHACA, Saunders, NE

Built 2023 Load: 26.0 t ADT: 110

N66

Good

Over: NORTH OAK CREEK

SCL VALPARAISO, Saunders, NE

Built 1978 Load: 26.0 t ADT: 915

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: UPPER CLEAR CREEK

1S .5E OF YUTAN, Saunders, NE

Built 1994 Load: 28.0 t ADT: 50

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: UPPER CLEAR CREEK

IN YUTAN, Saunders, NE

Built 1981 Load: 28.0 t ADT: 400

S78J LESHARA SPUR

Good

Over: OTOE CREEK

SCL LESHARA, Saunders, NE

Built 1979 Load: 28.0 t ADT: 570

FAS 3405

Good

Over: STREAM

JCT N66/N79 1.1S 7E, Saunders, NE

Built 1979 Load: 29.0 t ADT: 415

N66

Good

Over: WAHOO CREEK

1S ITHACA, Saunders, NE

Built 1958 Load: 30.0 t ADT: 1,315

N66

Good

Over: BSNF/SALT CREEK

EJCT US6/N63 .1N, Saunders, NE

Built 1987 Load: 30.0 t ADT: 4,520

COUNTY ROAD A

Good

Over: N FK ROCK CREEK

JCT US77/N63 2.3E 6S, Saunders, NE

Built 2014 Load: 31.0 t ADT: 480

N66

Good

Over: WAHOO CREEK TRIBUTARY

1SW ITHACA, Saunders, NE

Built 1958 Load: 31.0 t ADT: 1,315

COUNTY ROAD 14

Good

Over: STREAM

1W OF ITHACA, Saunders, NE

Built 2014 Load: 32.0 t ADT: 30

US6

Good

Over: OLD SALT CREEK CHANNEL

2NE ASHLAND, Saunders, NE

Built 1931 Load: 32.0 t ADT: 4,920

RD 30

Good

Over: NORTH OAK CREEK TRIB

_, Saunders, NE

Built 2020 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 30

COUNTY HIGHWAY

Good

Over: TRIB TO OAK CR NO.

1E 2S VALPARAISO, Saunders, NE

Built 2009 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 35

RD 21

Good

Over: STREAM

SJCT US77/N92 4W 2.7S, Saunders, NE

Built 2020 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 80

TOWNSHIP ROAD 20

Good

Over: STREAM

1.3S 3E OF WESTON, Saunders, NE

Built 2017 Load: 33.0 t ADT: 40

TOWNSHIP ROAD

Good

Over: STREAM

1S 2E OF MALMO, Saunders, NE

Built 2017 Load: 33.0 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.