County profile · official public datasets

Clay County, WV

87 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 32.2% rated Good, 54% Fair, 13.8% Poor.

87
Public bridges
32.2%
Good condition
13.8%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Clay County pairs a better-than-median Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state with a newer average build year than the state inventory.

Top 27%
lowest Poor share in state
13.8%
Poor-condition share
87
public highway bridges
1987
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.

Clay County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Clay County ranks #15 of 55 West Virginia counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 13.8%). Clay County, West Virginia contains 87 public highway bridges. Roughly 32.2% are rated “Good,” 54% “Fair,” and 13.8% “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

87

Public highway bridges in Clay County

Good condition

32.2%

28 of 87 rated 7-9

Fair condition

54%

47 of 87 rated 5-6

Poor condition

13.8%

12 of 87 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#15 of 55

Among West Virginia counties with 5+ bridges, lower share ranks better

Condition distribution

Share of 87 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
32.2% (28)
Fair
54% (47)
Poor
13.8% (12)

Clay County's Poor-condition bridges carry 6,440 vehicle crossings a day

That is 10.4% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 13.8% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 537 crossings a day against 215 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 87 of 87 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

24.1% of Clay County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

21 of the 87 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 32.2% 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 23.3% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

WV 16 over MIDDLE CREEK, built 1944, carries 1,500 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 6,440 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Clay County's bridges were built

87 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1990s, when 27 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 31% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 25 to 34 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year is 1987, 7 years newer than the West Virginia average of 1980.

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

How Clay County compares with West Virginia's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 West Virginia counties nearest Clay County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 13.8% Poor share is the 3rd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1987 against a peer-group mean of 1974 is 13 years newer.

Showing the 5 closest of 54 West Virginia counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Clay County and the 5 West Virginia counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Grant County 97 13.4%
Barbour County 93 15.1%
Hampshire County 92 10.9%
Clay County (this page) 87 13.8%
Marshall County 85 29.4%
Webster County 82 14.6%

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 Clay 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 Clay County, both outside West Virginia so the neighborhoods are not the same-state size table above.

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside WV (87 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside WV (1987 here).

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

All 87 Good 28 Fair 47 Poor 12

All bridges (87)

CR 46

Good

Over: Elk River

0.02 Mi. E. of WV 4, Clay, WV

Built 2023 Load: 39.9 t ADT: 400

CR 16/19

Good

Over: MIDDLE CREEK

0.01 MILE SOUTH OF WV 16, Clay, WV

Built 1999 Load: 46.3 t ADT: 70

CR 1/5

Good

Over: QUEEN SHOALS CREEK

0.11 MI S OF CR 1, Clay, WV

Built 2017 Load: 48.1 t ADT: 30

CR15/3 Wallow Hole

Good

Over: DOG RUN FORK

0.02 MI. S of CR15, Clay, WV

Built 2022 Load: 48.1 t ADT: 20

CR 19

Good

Over: Moore Fk Culvert

0.65 Mi. E of WV 16, Clay, WV

Built 2023 Load: 48.1 t ADT: 250

COUNTY ROUTE 12

Good

Over: SYCAMORE CREEK

0.53 MI N OF CR 1/11, Clay, WV

Built 2002 Load: 50.8 t ADT: 20

CR 15

Good

Over: DOG RUN

1.60 MI N OF CR 15/4, Clay, WV

Built 2015 Load: 50.8 t ADT: 200

CR 15

Good

Over: DOG RUN

2.13 MI N OF CR 15/4 SLS, Clay, WV

Built 2015 Load: 50.8 t ADT: 250

CR. 14 SLS

Good

Over: SUMMERS FK OF LAUREL CR

0.15 MI N OF CR 36/2, Clay, WV

Built 1988 Load: 51.7 t ADT: 300

CR 15/4

Good

Over: ROBINSON FK OF BUFFALO

2.50 MI N OF CR 15, Clay, WV

Built 2017 Load: 51.7 t ADT: 100

CR 2

Good

Over: PORTER CREEK

2.5 MI N OF CR 1, Clay, WV

Built 2017 Load: 51.7 t ADT: 80

CR 15/4

Good

Over: BUFFALO CREEK

0.03 MI S OF CR 15/6, Clay, WV

Built 2021 Load: 51.7 t ADT: 150

CR 15

Good

Over: BUFFALO CREEK

0.37 MI NORTH OF CR 15/3, Clay, WV

Built 1937 Load: 52.6 t ADT: 350

CR 2

Good

Over: PORTER CREEK

0.29 MI. N. OF CR 1, Clay, WV

Built 1995 Load: 54.4 t ADT: 250

CR 36/1

Good

Over: LAUREL FORK OF CAMP RUN

0.04 MI E OF WV 36, Clay, WV

Built 1991 Load: 54.4 t ADT: 200

CR 15 (SLS)

Good

Over: DOG RUN OF BUFFALO CREEK

0.22 MI N OF CR 15/3, Clay, WV

Built 1986 Load: 55.3 t ADT: 450

CR 2

Good

Over: PORTER CREEK

2.6 MI N OF CR 1, Clay, WV

Built 2017 Load: 58.0 t ADT: 80

CR 14

Good

Over: SUMMERS FORK

0.82 MI N OF CR 36/2, Clay, WV

Built 1991 Load: 59.0 t ADT: 300

WV 4

Good

Over: LAUREL CREEK

0.03 MI NORTH OF CR 14, Clay, WV

Built 2022 Load: 59.9 t ADT: 1,100

COUNTY ROUTE 7

Good

Over: RUSH FK. BIG OTTER CK.

1.62 MI N OF CR 7/1, Clay, WV

Built 1990 Load: 61.7 t ADT: 90

CR 1/12

Good

Over: ADONIJAH FORK

0.62 MI N OF CR 10, Clay, WV

Built 2017 Load: 61.7 t ADT: 50

CR 14

Good

Over: SUMMERS FORK

0.28 MI N OF CR 36/2, Clay, WV

Built 1991 Load: 62.6 t ADT: 300

COUNTY ROUTE 34

Good

Over: RIGHT FORK OF CAMP RUN

0.02 MI E OF WV 36, Clay, WV

Built 1991 Load: 62.6 t ADT: 150

COUNTY ROUTE 15/4

Good

Over: BUFFALO CREEK

2.54 MI N OF CR 15/5, Clay, WV

Built 1988 Load: 62.6 t ADT: 100

COUNTY ROUTE 14

Good

Over: SUMMERS FORK OF LAUREL

0.04 MI S. OF CR 20, Clay, WV

Built 2010 Load: 78.9 t ADT: 300

COUNTY ROUTE 44

Poor

Over: O BRION CREEK

0.45 MI N OF CR 19/1, Clay, WV

Built 1941 Load: 10.0 t ADT: 150

COUNTY ROUTE 16/10

Poor

Over: ROCKCAMP FK OF BELLS CK

0.50 MI N OF CR 81, Clay, WV

Built 1983 Load: 15.4 t ADT: 20

WV 4

Poor

Over: BIG OTTER CREEK

0.27 MI NORTH OF CR 46, Clay, WV

Built 1929 Load: 19.0 t ADT: 350

COUNTY ROUTE 28

Poor

Over: LEATHERWOOD CREEK

0.03 MI N OF CR 17, Clay, WV

Built 1979 Load: 20.0 t ADT: 40

WV 16

Poor

Over: MIDDLE CREEK

1.43 MI N OF CR 17, Clay, WV

Built 1944 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,500

WV 16

Poor

Over: CAMP CREEK

2.18 M N OF CR 5, Clay, WV

Built 1930 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,500

WV 36

Poor

Over: HANSFORD FK OF LAUREL CK

0.05 MI NORTH OF CR 36/3, Clay, WV

Built 1932 Load: 25.4 t ADT: 1,300

WV 16

Poor

Over: SYCAMORE CREEK

0.43 MI N OF CR 22, Clay, WV

Built 1940 Load: 29.0 t ADT: 1,300

COUNTY ROUTE 1

Poor

Over: ADONIJAH FK SYCAMORE CK

0.03 MI S OF CR 1/11, Clay, WV

Built 1977 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 150

COUNTY ROUTE 24/2

Poor

Over: SYCAMORE CREEK

0.03 MI S OF CR 24, Clay, WV

Built 1977 Load: 39.9 t ADT: 80

COUNTY ROUTE 22

Poor

Over: SYCAMORE CREEK

0.01 MI N OF WV 16, Clay, WV

Built 1992 Load: 49.9 t ADT: 10

COUNTY ROUTE 16/10

Poor

Over: ROCKCAMP FK OF BELLS CK

0.10 MI N OF CR 81, Clay, WV

Built 1991 Load: 58.0 t ADT: 40

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.