County profile · official public datasets

Roane County, WV

130 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 39.2% rated Good, 34.6% Fair, 26.2% Poor.

130
Public bridges
39.2%
Good condition
26.2%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

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

47th
of 55 on Poor share
26.2%
Poor-condition share
130
public highway bridges
1976
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.

Roane County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Roane County ranks #47 of 55 West Virginia counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 26.2%). Roane County, West Virginia contains 130 public highway bridges. Roughly 39.2% are rated “Good,” 34.6% “Fair,” and 26.2% “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.

Total bridges

130

Public highway bridges in Roane County

Good condition

39.2%

51 of 130 rated 7-9

Fair condition

34.6%

45 of 130 rated 5-6

Poor condition

26.2%

34 of 130 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#47 of 55

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

Condition distribution

Share of 130 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
39.2% (51)
Fair
34.6% (45)
Poor
26.2% (34)

Roane County's Poor-condition bridges carry 45,220 vehicle crossings a day

That is 29.5% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 26.2% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry more traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 1,330 crossings a day against 793 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 130 of 130 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

44.6% of Roane County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

58 of the 130 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 39.2% 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 21.7% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

I-79 NORTH over COOKMAN FORK OF SANDY CK, built 1972, carries 9,800 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 34-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 45,220 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Roane County's bridges were built

130 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1970s, when 28 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 21.5% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 45 to 54 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1976) matches the West Virginia average (1980).

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

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

The 5 West Virginia counties nearest Roane County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 26.2% Poor share is the 5th-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1976 against a peer-group mean of 1982 is 6 years older.

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

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Roane County and the 5 West Virginia counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Mason County 137 16.1%
Putnam County 135 15.6%
Boone County 131 16%
Hardy County 131 8.4%
Roane County (this page) 130 26.2%
Ritchie County 127 26.8%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside WV (130 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside WV (1976 here).

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

All 130 Good 51 Fair 45 Poor 34

Poor-condition bridges (34)

COUNTY ROUTE 29/13

Poor

Over: BIG SANDY CREEK

0.01 M NORTH OF CR 29/12, Roane, WV

Built 1971 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 100

COUNTY ROUTE 6/2

Poor

Over: LITTLE CREEK

0.01 M NORTH OF CR 6, Roane, WV

Built 1961 Load: 6.3 t ADT: 10

CR 34 SLS

Poor

Over: POCATALICO RIVER

0.21 MI. W. CR. 34/4, Roane, WV

Built 1899 Load: 8.2 t ADT: 100

COUNTY ROUTE 5/22

Poor

Over: ISLAND CREEK

1.00 MI E OF CR 5/21, Roane, WV

Built 1960 Load: 9.1 t ADT: 30

COUNTY ROUTE 29/7

Poor

Over: BIG SANDY CREEK

1.49 M SOUTH OF CR 29/9, Roane, WV

Built 1972 Load: 10.0 t ADT: 100

COUNTY ROUTE 15

Poor

Over: FLAT FORK POCATALICO RIV

0.70 MILE EAST OF CR 13, Roane, WV

Built 1920 Load: 11.8 t ADT: 350

COUNTY ROUTE 29/2

Poor

Over: GRANNY CREEK

0.01 M EAST OF CR 29/1, Roane, WV

Built 1961 Load: 13.6 t ADT: 30

COUNTY ROUTE 27

Poor

Over: HENRY FK OF W FK L KANAW

0.01 M SOUTH OF CR 27/4, Roane, WV

Built 1927 Load: 17.2 t ADT: 150

I-79 NBL

Poor

Over: CR 29 & Big Sandy Creek

3.56 MI. N. 0F CR 29, Roane, WV

Built 1972 Load: 17.2 t ADT: 4,900

COUNTY ROUTE 3

Poor

Over: STAATS RUN

0.03 M SOUTH OF CR 3/6, Roane, WV

Built 1961 Load: 19.0 t ADT: 250

WEST VIRGINIA 36

Poor

Over: SLATE RUN

0.01 MILE NORTH OF CR 40, Roane, WV

Built 1915 Load: 19.0 t ADT: 1,300

WV 14

Poor

Over: REEDY CREEK

0.02 MI NORTH OF CR 14/3, Roane, WV

Built 1960 Load: 20.0 t ADT: 1,100

US 119

Poor

Over: MCKOWN CREEK

0.03 M NORTH OF CR 54, Roane, WV

Built 1907 Load: 20.0 t ADT: 1,400

COUNTY ROUTE 62/1

Poor

Over: BLOWNTIMBER RUN

0.15 MILE EAST OF CR 62, Roane, WV

Built 1968 Load: 20.9 t ADT: 80

CR 4

Poor

Over: RIGHT FORK REEDY CREEK

0.11 MI WEST OF CR 1, Roane, WV

Built 1960 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 200

US 119

Poor

Over: HURRICANE CREEK

0.06 M NORTH OF CR 119/22, Roane, WV

Built 1918 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,800

US 119

Poor

Over: LEFT HAND RUN

0.27 MILE SOUTH OF CR 54, Roane, WV

Built 1919 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,400

COUNTY ROUTE 33/2

Poor

Over: GOFF RUN

0.03 MILE SOUTH OF US 33, Roane, WV

Built 1950 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 90

COUNTY RT 14/15

Poor

Over: Tanners Run

0.32 MI E OF WV 14, Roane, WV

Built 1956 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 150

COUNTY ROUTE 27

Poor

Over: TRACE FK LT FK B SANDY C

0.01 MILE SOUTH OF CR 31, Roane, WV

Built 1988 Load: 25.4 t ADT: 200

I-79 NBL

Poor

Over: Big Sandy Ck. & CR 29

3.94 MILE NORTH OF CR 29, Roane, WV

Built 1972 Load: 31.7 t ADT: 4,800

I-79 SBL

Poor

Over: Big Sandy Ck. & CR 29

3.94 MILE NORTH OF CR 29, Roane, WV

Built 1972 Load: 31.7 t ADT: 4,800

I-79 NORTH

Poor

Over: COOKMAN FORK OF SANDY CK

0.08 MILE NORTH OF WV 36, Roane, WV

Built 1972 Load: 32.7 t ADT: 9,800

COUNTY ROUTE 23

Poor

Over: HURRICANE CREEK

0.08 M SOUTH OF CR 23/3, Roane, WV

Built 1960 Load: 33.6 t ADT: 250

COUNTY ROUTE 62/1

Poor

Over: MIDDLE FK OF SANDY CRK

0.10 MILE EAST OF CR 62, Roane, WV

Built 1968 Load: 33.6 t ADT: 80

COUNTY ROUTE 29/1

Poor

Over: GRANNY CREEK

0.87 MI EAST OF CR 29/10, Roane, WV

Built 1960 Load: 33.6 t ADT: 150

COUNTY ROUTE 52

Poor

Over: RUSH CREEK

0.03 MI W OF CR 42, Roane, WV

Built 1982 Load: 35.4 t ADT: 10

I-79 SBL

Poor

Over: BIG SANDY CREEK/ C.R. 29

0.33 MI. N. OF CR. 29, Roane, WV

Built 1972 Load: 37.2 t ADT: 5,800

COUNTY ROUTE 25

Poor

Over: HENRY FORK

0.04 MI. W. OF CR50/2, Roane, WV

Built 1976 Load: 38.1 t ADT: 250

HARP 921

Poor

Over: TANNER RUN

0.03 MILE SOUTH OF US 33, Roane, WV

Built 1970 Load: 39.0 t ADT: 50

COUNTY ROUTE 56

Poor

Over: COTTONTREE RUN

0.97 MI N OF US 119, Roane, WV

Built 1953 Load: 39.9 t ADT: 300

I-79 SBL

Poor

Over: CR 29

3.56 MI. N. OF CR. 29, Roane, WV

Built 1972 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 4,900

CR 5/8

Poor

Over: STOVER FORK

0.02 MI SOUTH OF CR 13/1, Roane, WV

Built 1988 Load: 70.7 t ADT: 200

COUNTY ROUTE 16

Poor

Over: LITTLE SPRING CREEK

0.07 M NORTH OF C.R. 9/4, Roane, WV

Built 1960 Load: 74.4 t ADT: 90

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.