County profile · official public datasets

Waupaca County, WI

169 public highway bridges tracked in the FHWA National Bridge Inventory: 76.3% rated Good, 20.7% Fair, 3% Poor.

169
Public bridges
76.3%
Good condition
3%
Poor condition

The verdict

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

Waupaca County posts a top-10% lowest Poor-condition share among rated counties in the state across mid-size county bridge inventory.

Top 10%
lowest Poor share in state
3%
Poor-condition share
169
public highway bridges
1984
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.

Waupaca County Bridge Snapshot

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, Waupaca County ranks #7 of 72 Wisconsin counties with at least 5 public highway bridges on Poor-condition share (lower share ranks better; currently 3%). Waupaca County, Wisconsin contains 169 public highway bridges. Roughly 76.3% are rated “Good,” 20.7% “Fair,” and 3% “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

169

Public highway bridges in Waupaca County

Good condition

76.3%

129 of 169 rated 7-9

Fair condition

20.7%

35 of 169 rated 5-6

Poor condition

3%

5 of 169 rated 4 or below

In-state Poor-share rank

#7 of 72

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

Condition distribution

Share of 169 NBI-tracked bridges by lowest applicable component rating.

Good
76.3% (129)
Fair
20.7% (35)
Poor
3% (5)

Waupaca County's Poor-condition bridges carry 14,194 vehicle crossings a day

That is 2.6% of the county's reported daily bridge traffic on 3% of its bridges: Poor-condition structures carry less traffic than their share of the inventory. Each Poor bridge averages 2,839 crossings a day against 2,473 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 169 of 169 bridges in this county that report an average daily traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

32% of Waupaca County's bridges have passed the 50-year mark

54 of the 169 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 76.3% 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 72.9% of the county's Poor-condition bridge traffic

USH 10 WB over STH 49S - STH 54W, built 1965, carries 10,350 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 5-bridge count understates how much of the daily burden sits on a single crossing.

Share is of the 14,194 daily crossings on Poor-rated bridges that report a traffic count. Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2024 release.

When Waupaca County's bridges were built

169 bridges with a recorded construction year, grouped by decade

bridges

What this shows Construction peaked in the 1990s, when 45 of the county's bridges still in the inventory were built, which is 26.6% of those with a recorded year. That cohort is now 25 to 34 years old in the 2024 inventory. Its average build year (1984) matches the Wisconsin average (1984).

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

How Waupaca County compares with Wisconsin's closest counties by inventory size

The 5 Wisconsin counties nearest Waupaca County in number of bridges, with their condition splits. Its 3% Poor share is the 2nd-lowest of these 6. Its average build year of 1984 against a peer-group mean of 1982 is in line with the group.

Showing the 5 closest of 71 Wisconsin counties eligible for comparison.

Bridge inventory size and condition shares for Waupaca County and the 5 Wisconsin counties closest to it in inventory size
County Bridges Poor
Taylor County 176 11.4%
Juneau County 172 2.9%
Waupaca County (this page) 169 3%
Washington County 162 8.6%
Shawano County 160 9.4%
Lincoln County 157 6.4%

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

Similar inventory size

Nearest county inventories outside WI (169 bridges here).

Similar average build year

Nearest mean year-built outside WI (1984 here).

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

All 169 Good 129 Fair 35 Poor 5

Good-condition bridges (129)

LRD NOLLENBERG RD

Good

Over: BLAKE CREEK

0.3M N JCT STH 161, Waupaca, WI

Built 1984 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 90

LRD KNIGHT LANE (D

Good

Over: KNIGHT LAKE

1.3M S JCT CTH Q, Waupaca, WI

Built 1993 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 30

LRD MCNINCH RD (DE

Good

Over: LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.1M N JCT CTH C, Waupaca, WI

Built 1993 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 55

STH 22

Good

Over: LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.8M N JCT STH 161, Waupaca, WI

Built 1998 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 1,300

LRD SANDERS ROAD

Good

Over: CRYSTAL RIVER

TOWN OF DAYTON, Waupaca, WI

Built 2001 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 321

LRD BAILEY ST

Good

Over: WAUPACA RIVER

0.4M W JCT STH 49, Waupaca, WI

Built 2000 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 422

CTH KK

Good

Over: S BR LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.6M N JCT STH 22, Waupaca, WI

Built 2001 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 410

STH 22/54 RAMP D

Good

Over: USH10

1.6M N JCT USH 10 TO W, Waupaca, WI

Built 2001 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 5,400

LRD HATTON RD

Good

Over: HATTON CREEK

0.7MILES SOUTHEAST JCT CT, Waupaca, WI

Built 2018 Load: 34.0 t ADT: 190

STH 49

Good

Over: S BR LITTLE WOLF RIVER

7.7M N JCT STH 22 TO S, Waupaca, WI

Built 2012 Load: 34.3 t ADT: 2,400

STH 22-MAIN ST

Good

Over: PIGEON RIVER

0.2M N JCT USH 45 TO N, Waupaca, WI

Built 2015 Load: 35.0 t ADT: 8,600

CTH B

Good

Over: S BR LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.1M E JCT CTH G, Waupaca, WI

Built 2022 Load: 35.0 t ADT: 1,350

LRD ROYALTON ST

Good

Over: WAUPACA RIVER

1.6M N JCT USH 10 TO E, Waupaca, WI

Built 1990 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 6,400

LRD NORTH MILITARY

Good

Over: S BR LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.7M S JCT CTH KK, Waupaca, WI

Built 1993 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 65

STH 22-STH 110

Good

Over: BLAKE CREEK

2.0M N JCT CTH N TO W, Waupaca, WI

Built 1998 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 2,000

LRD DRAKE RD (DEAD

Good

Over: FLUME CREEK

0.3M S JCT CTH C, Waupaca, WI

Built 1997 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 20

STH 49

Good

Over: WISC. CENTRAL RR

1.9M N JCT STH 22 TO S, Waupaca, WI

Built 1999 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 3,600

USH 10 EB

Good

Over: STH 110

3.2M E JCT STH 49, Waupaca, WI

Built 2003 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 10,150

LRD KNITT RD

Good

Over: N BR PIGEON RIVER

0.2M E JCT USH 45, Waupaca, WI

Built 2001 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 271

CTH X

Good

Over: RAM CREEK

1.0M W JCT CTH W, Waupaca, WI

Built 2000 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 2,816

LRD SHADOW RD

Good

Over: CRYSTAL RIVER

1.5 MILES S JCT USH 10, Waupaca, WI

Built 2018 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 320

LRD REEK RD

Good

Over: WAUPACA RIVER

0.1M N JCT USH 10, Waupaca, WI

Built 1969 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 733

LRD LIND CENTER RD

Good

Over: WALLA WALLA CREEK

0.9M E JCT CTH A, Waupaca, WI

Built 1917 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 80

CTH Q

Good

Over: S BR LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.1M W JCT STH 49, Waupaca, WI

Built 1965 Load: 35.6 t ADT: 357

CTH C

Good

Over: LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.2M E JCT CTH E, Waupaca, WI

Built 2014 Load: 36.0 t ADT: 537

LRD EMMONS CREEK R

Good

Over: EMMONS CREEK

0.1M E W RD, Waupaca, WI

Built 2017 Load: 36.3 t ADT: 110

LRD KRETCHMER RD

Good

Over: LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.1M W JCT CTH C, Waupaca, WI

Built 1979 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 173

LRD NEITZKE RD

Good

Over: S BR PIGEON RIVER

0.6M E JCT STH 110, Waupaca, WI

Built 1985 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 552

CTH A

Good

Over: WALLA WALLA CREEK

0.3M S JCT CTH EE, Waupaca, WI

Built 1989 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 755

STH 54

Good

Over: CEDAR CREEK

3.9M E JCT CTH B TO N, Waupaca, WI

Built 1996 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 6,900

STH 161

Good

Over: NORTH FORK BLAKE CREEK

1.6M E JCT CTH K TO S, Waupaca, WI

Built 1996 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 1,100

USH 10 WB

Good

Over: STH 110 EB / CTH X

1.0M W JCT CTH F, Waupaca, WI

Built 1998 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 9,750

USH 10 EB

Good

Over: STH 49

2.0M EAST JCT CTH U, Waupaca, WI

Built 1999 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 10,150

USH 10 WB

Good

Over: STH 49

4.0M W JCT STH 110, Waupaca, WI

Built 1999 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 10,150

USH 10 WB

Good

Over: STH 110 NB

AT STH 110, Waupaca, WI

Built 2003 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 10,150

STH 110-MILLS ST

Good

Over: WAUPACA RIVER

1.3M N JCT USH 10 TO W, Waupaca, WI

Built 2003 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 5,600

STH 49

Good

Over: FLUME CREEK

2.0M N JCT CTH Z, Waupaca, WI

Built 2004 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 1,600

STH 110

Good

Over: S BR PIGEON RIVER

1.7M N JCT CTH C TO E, Waupaca, WI

Built 2004 Load: 37.3 t ADT: 820

CTH E (BERLIN ST)

Good

Over: CRYSTAL RIVER

0.8M S JCT STH 22, Waupaca, WI

Built 2018 Load: 38.2 t ADT: 2,502

USH10-STH22/49/54E

Good

Over: CTH E

1.1M E JCT STH 22 TO S, Waupaca, WI

Built 2020 Load: 38.2 t ADT: 10,700

LRD WEST ROAD

Good

Over: EMMONS CREEK

0.06M S JCT EMMONS CREEK, Waupaca, WI

Built 2015 Load: 38.6 t ADT: 120

LRD WEST ROAD

Good

Over: RADLEY CREEK

0.3M N JCT STH 22, Waupaca, WI

Built 2015 Load: 38.6 t ADT: 190

LRD 7TH STREET

Good

Over: EMBARRASS RIVER

0.5M W JCT CTH Y, Waupaca, WI

Built 1991 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 341

LRD ANDERSON RD

Good

Over: WAUPACA RIVER

0.2M N JCT USH 10, Waupaca, WI

Built 1990 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 723

CTH E (WALL ST)

Good

Over: LITTLE WOLF RIVER

0.1M E JCT CTH C, Waupaca, WI

Built 1993 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 690

LRD WATER ST

Good

Over: WAUPACA RIVER

0.1M W JCT CTH E, Waupaca, WI

Built 1994 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 3,600

LRD RURAL ROAD

Good

Over: CRYSTAL RIVER

0.1M W JCT CTH K, Waupaca, WI

Built 1993 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 281

USH 10 WB

Good

Over: LRD MARTIN RD

1.5M E JCT UCTH II, Waupaca, WI

Built 2003 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 20,800

STH 22/54

Good

Over: WAUPACA RIVER

1.0 M NORTH OF USH10, Waupaca, WI

Built 2008 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 5,000

LRD DAYTON ROAD

Good

Over: RADLEY CREEK

0.2M E JCT STH 22, Waupaca, WI

Built 2015 Load: 38.9 t ADT: 140

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.