Total bridges
232
Public highway bridges in Gaston County
County profile · official public datasets
Gaston County, NC
232 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 36.6% rated Good, 58.2% Fair, 5.2% Poor.
- 232
- Public bridges
- 36.6%
- Good condition
- 5.2%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Gaston 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.
- 54th
- of 100 on Poor share
- 5.2%
- Poor-condition share
- 232
- public highway bridges
- 1980
- 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.
Gaston County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Gaston County ranks #54 of 100 North Carolina counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 5.2%). Gaston County, North Carolina contains 232 public highway bridges. Roughly 36.6% are rated “Good,” 58.2% “Fair,” and 5.2% “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
36.6%
85 of 232 rated 7-9
Fair condition
58.2%
135 of 232 rated 5-6
Poor condition
5.2%
12 of 232 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#54 of 100
Among North Carolina counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 232 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 36.6% (85)
Fair 58.2% (135)
Poor 5.2% (12)
Gaston County's Poor-condition bridges carry 138,750 vehicle crossings a day
That is 5.5% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 5.2% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry more traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 11,563 crossings a day against 7,612 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 232 of 232 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
40.5% of Gaston County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
94 of the 232 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 36.6% 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 57.7% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
I85 over ABERNATHY CREEK, built 1962, carries 80,000 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 12-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 138,750 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Gaston County's bridges were built
232 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1920s 1
1920–1929
1 bridges
- 1930s 6
1930–1939
6 bridges
- 1940s 3
1940–1949
3 bridges
- 1950s
1950–1959
24 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
52 bridges
- 1970s
1970–1979
25 bridges
- 1980s
1980–1989
53 bridges
- 1990s
1990–1999
26 bridges
- 2000s 15
2000–2009
15 bridges
- 2010s 21
2010–2019
21 bridges
- 2020s 6
2020–2029
6 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1980s, when 53 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 22.8% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 35 to 44 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year is 1980, 6 years older than the North Carolina average of 1986.
How Gaston County compares with North Carolina's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 North Carolina counties nearest Gaston County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 5.2% Poor share is the 1st-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1980 against a peer-group mean of 1984 is in line with the group.
Showing the 5 closest of 99 North Carolina counties eligible for comparison.
| County | Bridges | Good | Fair | Poor | Avg. built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabarrus County | 236 | 53% | 38.6% | 8.5% | 1993 |
| McDowell County | 235 | 43.4% | 48.9% | 7.7% | 1981 |
| Jackson County | 234 | 39.7% | 47.4% | 12.8% | 1977 |
| Gaston County (this page) | 232 | 36.6% | 58.2% | 5.2% | 1980 |
| Burke County | 231 | 43.3% | 51.1% | 5.6% | 1981 |
| Rockingham County | 229 | 48.5% | 39.7% | 11.8% | 1987 |
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 Gaston 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 Gaston County, both outside North Carolina so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside NC (232 bridges here).
- Douglas County, IL · 232 bridges
- Monroe County, IN · 232 bridges
- Pearl River County, MS · 232 bridges
- Atoka County, OK · 232 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside NC (1980 here).
- Tulsa County, OK · avg 1980 · 1,135 bridges
- Miami-Dade County, FL · avg 1980 · 1,057 bridges
- Pulaski County, AR · avg 1980 · 721 bridges
- McLennan County, TX · avg 1980 · 714 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
Fair-condition bridges (135)
SR2003
FairOver: SOUTH FORK CATAWBA RIVER
0.2 MI. N. JCT. SR2201, Gaston, NC
Built 1957 Load: 48.9 t ADT: 5,700
NC279
FairOver: I85
0.5 MI. W. JCT. US29/74, Gaston, NC
Built 1963 Load: 49.8 t ADT: 28,000
US321BUS NC275/279
FairOver: US321
0.1 MI. E. JCT. SR3061, Gaston, NC
Built 1986 Load: 49.8 t ADT: 18,000
US29
FairOver: ALBERDEEN BLVD
0.24 MI. N. JCT. NC279, Gaston, NC
Built 1960 Load: 50.8 t ADT: 18,500
N MODENA STREET
FairOver: I85
1.3 MI. N. JCT. US321, Gaston, NC
Built 1963 Load: 51.7 t ADT: 5,400
SR1607
FairOver: US321
0.3MI.E.JCT.BUS.321, Gaston, NC
Built 1987 Load: 52.6 t ADT: 4,100
NC279
FairOver: CATAWBA CREEK
0.9 MI. S. JCT. NC273, Gaston, NC
Built 1979 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 6,200
NC274
FairOver: LONG CREEK
0.3 MI. S. JCT. SR1405, Gaston, NC
Built 1983 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 3,700
US321 BUS
FairOver: LITTLE LONG CREEK
.6 MI.N.JCT.NC275, Gaston, NC
Built 1977 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 7,800
US321 S
FairOver: SOUTHERN RAILWAY
0.18 MI. N. JCT.US29&74, Gaston, NC
Built 1989 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 9,700
SR1109
FairOver: S.FORK CROWDERS CREEK
0.7 MI. E. JCT. SR1108, Gaston, NC
Built 1991 Load: 55.3 t ADT: 2,400
SR1327
FairOver: I85
0.14 MI. E. JCT. SR1355, Gaston, NC
Built 1962 Load: 55.3 t ADT: 1,500
I85/US29 SBL
FairOver: US74 EBL
0.6 MI. N. JCT. SR1118, Gaston, NC
Built 1983 Load: 56.2 t ADT: 40,000
SR1443
FairOver: LONG CREEK
0.7 MI. N. JCT. SR1450, Gaston, NC
Built 1992 Load: 56.2 t ADT: 750
SR1823
FairOver: LITTLE HOYLE CREEK
0.5 MI. W. JCT. SR1827, Gaston, NC
Built 1951 Load: 57.1 t ADT: 1,400
I85
FairOver: KAGLOR BRANCH
0.5 MI. S. JCT. US321, Gaston, NC
Built 1962 Load: 58.9 t ADT: 93,500
BIRCH STREET
FairOver: CSX RR
0.1MI.N.JCT.FIRST ST., Gaston, NC
Built 1987 Load: 59.8 t ADT: 250
NC279
FairOver: SOUTHERN RAILROAD
0.1 MI. E. JCT. NC7, Gaston, NC
Built 1968 Load: 61.6 t ADT: 20,000
US321
FairOver: SULPHUR BRANCH
5.6 MI. N. JCT. NC275, Gaston, NC
Built 1987 Load: 65.3 t ADT: 40,500
SR2519
FairOver: SOUTH FORK CATAWBA RIVER
0.7 MI. N. JCT. SR2518, Gaston, NC
Built 1977 Load: 67.1 t ADT: 8,800
US321
FairOver: RATTLE SHOAL CREEK
3.6 MI.N.JCT.NC275/NC279, Gaston, NC
Built 1987 Load: 70.7 t ADT: 38,000
SR1602
FairOver: LITTLE LONG CREEK
0.5 MI. N. JCT. NC279, Gaston, NC
Built 1961 Load: 71.6 t ADT: 1,300
CALDWELL STREET
FairOver: HIGHLAND CREEK
0.1 MI. E JCT.CHESTER ST., Gaston, NC
Built 1965 Load: 72.5 t ADT: 1,000
SR1923
FairOver: SOUTH STANLEY CREEK
0.3 MI. S. JCT. SR1959, Gaston, NC
Built 1987 Load: 75.2 t ADT: 2,100
SR1255
FairOver: UT TO CATAWBA CREEK
0.8 MI. E. JCT. US321, Gaston, NC
Built 1997 Load: 79.8 t ADT: 14,000
SR2044
FairOver: FITES CREEK
0.2 MI. N. JCT. SR2063, Gaston, NC
Built 1960 Load: 86.1 t ADT: 4,000
SR2439
FairOver: CATAWBA CREEK
0.4 MI. N. JCT. SR2445, Gaston, NC
Built 1991 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 8,000
SR1403
FairOver: UT TO LONG CREEK
0.1 MI. S. JCT. SR1511, Gaston, NC
Built 1984 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 450
SR1408
FairOver: LONG CREEK
0.2 MI. E. JCT. SR1401, Gaston, NC
Built 1989 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 900
SR1621
FairOver: UT TO BEAVERDAM CREEK
0.3 MI. E. JCT. SR1620, Gaston, NC
Built 1992 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 340
SR1607
FairOver: SULPHUR BRANCH
100 FT. W. JCT. SR3061, Gaston, NC
Built 1990 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 930
SR1001
FairOver: LITTLE LONG CREEK
1.0 MI. N. JCT. NC275, Gaston, NC
Built 1984 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 5,200
SR1805
FairOver: COLEY CREEK
1.0 MI. N. JCT. SR1804, Gaston, NC
Built 1990 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 710
SR1831
FairOver: MAUNEY CREEK
20 FT. E. JCT. SR1823, Gaston, NC
Built 1983 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 910
SR1902
FairOver: STANLEY CREEK
0.9 MI. N. JCT. SR1903, Gaston, NC
Built 1984 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 2,900
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.