Total bridges
746
Public highway bridges in Mecklenburg County
County profile · official public datasets
Mecklenburg County, NC
746 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 46.4% rated Good, 51.1% Fair, 2.5% Poor.
- 746
- Public bridges
- 46.4%
- Good condition
- 2.5%
- Poor condition
The verdict
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory.
Mecklenburg County posts a top-quartile lowest Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across large county bridge inventory.
- Top 22%
- lowest Poor share in state
- 2.5%
- Poor-condition share
- 746
- public highway bridges
- 1989
- 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.
Mecklenburg County Bridge Snapshot
According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Mecklenburg County ranks #22 of 100 North Carolina counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 2.5%). Mecklenburg County, North Carolina contains 746 public highway bridges. Roughly 46.4% are rated “Good,” 51.1% “Fair,” and 2.5% “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
46.4%
346 of 746 rated 7-9
Fair condition
51.1%
381 of 746 rated 5-6
Poor condition
2.5%
19 of 746 rated 4 or below
In-state Poor-share rank
#22 of 100
Among North Carolina counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better
Condition distribution
Share of 746 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.
Good 46.4% (346)
Fair 51.1% (381)
Poor 2.5% (19)
Mecklenburg County's Poor-condition bridges carry 564,250 vehicle crossings a day
That is 2.9% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 2.5% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry more traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 29,697 crossings a day against 21,183 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 746 of 746 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
27.2% of Mecklenburg County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark
203 of the 746 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 46.4% 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 20.4% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic
I277 & NC16 over US29/NC49 (GRAHAM ST.), built 1971, carries 115,000 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 19-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.
Share is of the 564,250 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.
When Mecklenburg County's bridges were built
746 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade
- 1920s 4
1920–1929
4 bridges
- 1930s 7
1930–1939
7 bridges
- 1940s 10
1940–1949
10 bridges
- 1950s 45
1950–1959
45 bridges
- 1960s
1960–1969
60 bridges
- 1970s
1970–1979
115 bridges
- 1980s
1980–1989
102 bridges
- 1990s
1990–1999
140 bridges
- 2000s
2000–2009
131 bridges
- 2010s
2010–2019
114 bridges
- 2020s 18
2020–2029
18 bridges
What this shows Construction peaked in the 1990s, when 140 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 18.8% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 25 to 34 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1989) matches the North Carolina average (1986).
How Mecklenburg County compares with North Carolina's closest counties by inventory size
The 5 North Carolina counties nearest Mecklenburg County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 2.5% Poor share is the 2nd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1989 against a peer-group mean of 1987 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wake County | 760 | 53.8% | 40.4% | 5.8% | 1992 |
| Mecklenburg County (this page) | 746 | 46.4% | 51.1% | 2.5% | 1989 |
| Guilford County | 736 | 51.8% | 42.9% | 5.3% | 1990 |
| Buncombe County | 555 | 34.6% | 58.4% | 7% | 1978 |
| Forsyth County | 454 | 41.2% | 49.8% | 9% | 1985 |
| Randolph County | 401 | 45.6% | 52.9% | 1.5% | 1988 |
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 Mecklenburg 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 Mecklenburg County, both outside North Carolina so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.
Similar inventory size
Nearest county inventories outside NC (746 bridges here).
- Fairfax County, VA · 751 bridges
- Sacramento County, CA · 740 bridges
- Champaign County, IL · 727 bridges
- Pulaski County, AR · 721 bridges
Similar average build year
Nearest mean year-built outside NC (1989 here).
- Harris County, TX · avg 1989 · 4,029 bridges
- Buffalo County, NE · avg 1989 · 459 bridges
- Brazos County, TX · avg 1989 · 370 bridges
- Dubuque County, IA · avg 1989 · 346 bridges
Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release. Peers floor at 10 bridges so stub inventories cannot own the match.
Fair-condition bridges (381)
SR 5901
FairOver: I85
0.56 MI.N.JCT.US29 &US74, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1981 Load: 71.6 t ADT: 41,000
I485 WBL
FairOver: CSX RAILWAY
0.4 MI. N. JCT. SR1010, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1997 Load: 73.4 t ADT: 34,000
I485
FairOver: GOOSE CREEK
0.16 MI. N. JCT. SR1004, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2000 Load: 76.2 t ADT: 55,000
CHADSFORD PLACE
FairOver: UT TO BRIAR CREEK
.05MI N JCT VERNON DR, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2018 Load: 78.0 t ADT: 210
I485
FairOver: BACK CREEK
0.6 MI. S. JCT. NC49, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2003 Load: 78.9 t ADT: 52,000
STATE STREET
FairOver: STEWART CREEK
275 FT. E. JCT. GESCO ST., Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1955 Load: 79.8 t ADT: 3,400
I485
FairOver: NORTH FORK CROOKED CREEK
0.1 MI. N. JCT. SR3177, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1997 Load: 79.8 t ADT: 56,500
I85 RAMP
FairOver: I77 RAMP
0.2 MI. W. JCT. SR2691, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1989 Load: 84.3 t ADT: 24,300
SR3445
FairOver: SIX MILE CREEK
0.1 MI. W. JCT. SR4349, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1988 Load: 87.9 t ADT: 11,000
SMITH ROAD
FairOver: WALKER BRANCH
0.2 MI. S. JCT. SR1122, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1992 Load: 87.9 t ADT: 175
SR1255
FairOver: COFFEY CREEK
0.2 MI.E.JCT.SR1180, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1975 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 7,200
SR3101
FairOver: WILEY BRANCH
150 FT. N. JCT. SR4154, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1991 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 780
ROCKY RIVER RD.
FairOver: TOBY CREEK
0.5 MI.W.JCT.OLD CONCORD, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1976 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 3,200
SR2442
FairOver: N. PRONG CLARKS CREEK
0.5 MI. S. JCT. SR2426, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1974 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 5,400
SR2037
FairOver: GUTTER BRANCH
0.55 MI.W.JCT.SR2040, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1980 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 350
SR2439
FairOver: NORTH PRONG CLARKE CREEK
0.2 MI. W. JCT. SR2602, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1985 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 8,000
SR2975
FairOver: SUGAR CREEK
0.1 MI. E. JCT. US29, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1960 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 34,000
SR5901 RAMP
FairOver: TAGGART CREEK
1.3 MI. S. JCT. I85, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1981 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 4,800
FOUR MILE CRK ROAD
FairOver: UT TO FOURMILE CREEK
.04 N.JCT.FAIRWAY RIDGE R, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1974 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 800
US521
FairOver: UT TO MCALPINE CREEK
0.4 MI. S. JCT. I485, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1996 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 59,000
I485 EBL RAMP
FairOver: WESTINGHOUSE BRANCH
0.9 MI. N. JCT. SR1128, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1997 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 9,300
I485 SBL RAMP
FairOver: STONY CREEK
0.3 MI. S. JCT. I85, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1999 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 14,000
I485
FairOver: STEVENS CREEK
0.21 MI. N. JCT. SR1004, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2000 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 55,000
SR3632
FairOver: FLAT BRANCH
0.15 MI. E. JCT. SR5722, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2002 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 18,000
SR3632
FairOver: FLAT BRANCH OVERFLOW
0.17 MI. E. JCT. SR5722, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2002 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 18,000
E.WESTINGHOUSE BLV
FairOver: KINGS BRANCH
.2MI.E.JCT.NATIONS FORD R, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1960 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 21,000
COLONY ROAD
FairOver: MCMULLEN CREEK
100 S.JTC. COLONYCROSSDR, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 1990 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 19,000
ARCHDALE DRIVE
FairOver: KINGS BRANCH CREEK
300 W JCT FERNHILL DRIVE, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2018 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 13,000
IBM DRIVE
FairOver: DOBY CREEK
150.S.JCT.W. WT HARRIS, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2018 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 12,000
CREEK BREEZE ROAD
FairOver: STONY CREEK
0.17MI N JCT J. OEHLER RD, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2020 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 3,840
IBM DRIVE
FairOver: CREEK
0.23MI S JCT. SOLECTRON D, Mecklenburg, NC
Built 2021 Load: 89.8 t ADT: 12,000
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.