County profile · official public datasets

Smith County, TX

427 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 47.1% rated Good, 51.5% Fair, 1.4% Poor.

427
Public bridges
47.1%
Good condition
1.4%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

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

156th
of 247 on Poor share
1.4%
Poor-condition share
427
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.

Smith County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Smith County ranks #156 of 247 Texas counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 1.4%). Smith County, Texas contains 427 public highway bridges. Roughly 47.1% are rated “Good,” 51.5% “Fair,” and 1.4% “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

427

Public highway bridges in Smith County

Good condition

47.1%

201 of 427 rated 7-9

Fair condition

51.5%

220 of 427 rated 5-6

Poor condition

1.4%

6 of 427 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#156 of 247

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

Condition distribution

Share of 427 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
47.1% (201)
Fair
51.5% (220)
Poor
1.4% (6)

Smith County's Poor-condition bridges carry 10,742 vehicle crossings a day

That is 0.4% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 1.4% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 1,790 crossings a day against 3,732 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 427 of 427 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

45.9% of Smith County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

196 of the 427 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 47.1% 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 67.6% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

SH 64 over LAKE TYLER - E MUD CREEK, built 1937, carries 7,260 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 6-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 10,742 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Smith County's bridges were built

427 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1960s, when 95 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 22.2% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 55 to 64 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1981) matches the Texas average (1980).

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

How Smith County compares with Texas's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Texas counties nearest Smith County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 1.4% Poor share is the 6th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1981 against a peer-group mean of 1980 is in line with the group.

Showing the 5 closest of 246 Texas counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Smith County and the 5 Texas counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Kaufman County 452 1.1%
Smith County (this page) 427 1.4%
Taylor County 419 0.7%
Hidalgo County 405 1%
Hill County 405 1%
Johnson County 404 0%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside TX (427 bridges here).

Similar average build year

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

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

All 427 Good 201 Fair 220 Poor 6

All bridges (427)

TOLL 49

Good

Over: SHACKLEFORD CR TR

0.12 MI W OF FM 756, Smith, TX

Built 2011 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 5,151

TOLL 49 OFF-RAMP

Good

Over: SHACKLEFORD CR TR

0.2 MI W OF FM 756, Smith, TX

Built 2009 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,000

TOLL 49

Good

Over: HENSHAW CR TR

1.5 MI W OF US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2006 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 8,703

TOLL 49 EBFR

Good

Over: HENSHAW CR

2.4 MI W OF US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2006 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 1,291

TOLL 49 WBFR

Good

Over: HENSHAW CR

2.4 MI W OF US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2006 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 750

TOLL 49

Good

Over: SALINE CR TR

3.8 MI W OF US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2006 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 9,570

TOLL 49

Good

Over: SH 155/SALINE CR TR

AT SH 155 SW OF TYLER, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 9,570

CR 196

Good

Over: TOLL 49

0.95 MI NW OF SH 155, Smith, TX

Built 2011 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 618

TOLL 49

Good

Over: TAYLOR CR TR 2

4.45 MI S OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 8,910

TOLL 49

Good

Over: CR 1113/TAYLOR CR TR

4.1 MI S OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 8,910

TOLL 49

Good

Over: BUTLER CR

3.6 MI S OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 8,910

CR 1130

Good

Over: TOLL 49

2.95 MI N of SH 155, Smith, TX

Built 2011 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 202

CR 1227

Good

Over: TOLL 49

2.6 MI S OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 113

TOLL 49

Good

Over: INDIAN CR TR

2.05 MI S OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 8,910

TOLL 49

Good

Over: Rail(UP)/CR1134/IndianCr

1.55 MI S OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 8,910

TOLL 49

Good

Over: SH 31

2.55 MI S OF SH 64, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 10,118

TOLL 49

Good

Over: INDIAN CR TR

0.33 MI N OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 10,118

CR 1145

Good

Over: TOLL 49

1.80 MI S OF SH 64, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 149

TOLL 49

Good

Over: NECHES RV TR 2

1.35 MI S OF SH 64, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 10,118

TOLL 49

Good

Over: NECHES RV TR 1

0.85 MI S OF SH 64, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 10,118

TOLL 49

Good

Over: PRAIRIE CR TR

0.10 MI N OF FM 724, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 9,466

TOLL 49

Good

Over: CR 1150

3.80 MI S OF SH 110, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 9,466

TOLL 49

Good

Over: BLACK FORK CR / PVT DR

3.55 MI S OF SH 110, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 9,466

TOLL 49

Good

Over: PRAIRIE CR

2.95 MI S OF SH 110, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 9,466

CR 46

Good

Over: TOLL 49

2.30 MI S OF SH 110, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 1,562

TOLL 49

Good

Over: LONG BRAKE CR TR

1.10 MI S OF IH 20, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,716

TOLL 49 Ramps

Good

Over: LONG BRAKE CR

0.10 MI S OF IH 20, Smith, TX

Built 2013 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 3,058

Toll 49 ML

Good

Over: IH 20/Long Brake Tr

Toll 49 @ IH 20, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,716

Toll 49 NB Ramp

Good

Over: IH 20

@IH 20, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,653

Toll 49 NB On-Ramp

Good

Over: Long Brake Tributary

Toll 49 @ IH 20, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 273

Toll 49

Good

Over: Davis Branch Tributary

0.87mi N of FM 849, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,860

Toll 49

Good

Over: Davis Branch

1.3 mi N of FM 849, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,860

Toll 49

Good

Over: FM 16

1.74mi N of FM 849, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,860

Toll 49

Good

Over: Stevenson Branch Relief

1.6mi SW of US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,532

Toll 49

Good

Over: CR 431/Stevenson Branch

1.3mi SW of US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 2,532

CR 4118

Good

Over: Toll 49

0.41mi SW of US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2018 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 77

Marsh Farm Rd

Good

Over: Shackleford Cr

.81 MI E OF US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2022 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 149

CR 452

Good

Over: ROCK CREEK

1.9 MI W of US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2010 Load: 34.5 t ADT: 210

FM 16

Good

Over: SALINE CREEK

3.3 MI W OF FM 14, Smith, TX

Built 1990 Load: 36.3 t ADT: 2,049

FM 16

Good

Over: RED SPRINGS BRANCH

0.9 MI W OF FM 14, Smith, TX

Built 1990 Load: 36.3 t ADT: 1,735

FM 1252

Good

Over: PRAIRIE CREEK REL

5.45 MI E OF FM 757, Smith, TX

Built 1990 Load: 36.3 t ADT: 401

CR 113

Good

Over: DEAN BRANCH

1.3 MI E of US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2011 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 140

CR 137

Good

Over: HENSHAW CREEK

0.65 MI W OF US 69, Smith, TX

Built 2015 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 204

CR 230

Good

Over: LAKE TYLER E NORTH COVE

1.40 MI N OF FM 345, Smith, TX

Built 2012 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 1,022

CR 245

Good

Over: WILDS CREEK

0.25 MI S OF SH 31, Smith, TX

Built 1998 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 10

CR 484

Good

Over: ROCK CREEK

1.05 MI W OF US 69, Smith, TX

Built 1994 Load: 39.0 t ADT: 309

Pleasant Retreat R

Good

Over: INDIAN CREEK TRIB

2.0 MI E OF FM 2661, Smith, TX

Built 2009 Load: 39.9 t ADT: 195

US 271 NB

Good

Over: HARRIS CREEK TRIB

0.2 MI W OF FM 2908, Smith, TX

Built 1969 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 6,660

US 271 NB

Good

Over: HARRIS CREEK

0.1 MI W OF FM 2908, Smith, TX

Built 1969 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 6,660

US 271 NB

Good

Over: THUNDERSTRUCK CREEK

0.1 MI E OF FM 2908, Smith, TX

Built 1969 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 5,990

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.