State profile · Below median Poor share

Alabama bridge safety

According to the Federal Highway Administration's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, condition ratings, load ratings, and Poor-condition shares for every public highway bridge in Alabama.

16,205
Public bridges
37.0%
Good condition
3.4%
Poor condition

Alabama holds 16,205 public highway bridges (#15 of 52 by inventory) with a 3.35% Poor share (#43 of 52 by Poor share).

That is 3.4% of the state's inventory, against an average of 7.5% across the 54 states and territories with Poor-rated bridges on file, which places it 10 of 54 ordered from the lowest Poor share upward. A bridge is rated Poor when its weakest applicable component scores 4 or below on the inspecting agency's 0-9 scale, so the category is a maintenance and funding signal rather than a closure order or a live crossing-safety verdict.

Inventory: FHWA NBI 2024 · last ETL August 2026

Total Bridges

16,205

Public highway bridges in Alabama

Good Condition

37.0%

5,993 bridges rated 7-9

-13.0pp vs 50% benchmark

Poor Condition

3.4%

543 bridges whose lowest applicable component is rated 0-4

-4.2pp vs national avg 7.5%

Alabama vs national bridge condition

Alabama - Good condition share 37.0%
National avg

Share of bridges rated 7-9 on the FHWA 0-9 scale (deck, superstructure, substructure all good).

Alabama - Poor-condition share 11.2%
National avg

Lower is better. Bar maxes at 30% (worst-state ceiling). National average sits at 7.5%.

Alabama in the national condition pattern

Each point is a state or territory in the FHWA NBI; the highlighted point is this profile.

Inventory size and Poor-condition share are different measures: Alabama has 16,205 bridges and a 3.4% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #10 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The dashed comparisons mark the national average state rate and the midpoint of the plotted inventory range; neither is a live safety or closure threshold. Scatter plot of 54 data points. 0%10%20%30%40% 0k20k40k60k Public bridges in inventory (thousands) Poor-condition share (%) AL, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 16.2k · Poor-condition share (%): 3.35%AK, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 1.7k · Poor-condition share (%): 7.89%AZ, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 8.6k · Poor-condition share (%): 1.15%AR, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 13k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.43%CA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 25.8k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.91%CO, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 9k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.82%CT, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 4.4k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.72%DE, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 0.9k · Poor-condition share (%): 1.26%DC, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 0.3k · Poor-condition share (%): 1.95%FL, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 13k · Poor-condition share (%): 2.79%GA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 15.1k · Poor-condition share (%): 1.59%GU, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 0k · Poor-condition share (%): 12.77%HI, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 1.2k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.53%ID, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 4.6k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.9%IL, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 26.9k · Poor-condition share (%): 9.35%IN, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 19.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.22%IA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 23.7k · Poor-condition share (%): 19.16%KS, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 24.9k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.26%KY, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 14.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 7.37%LA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 12.7k · Poor-condition share (%): 11.48%ME, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 2.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 15.41%MD, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 5.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.56%MA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 5.3k · Poor-condition share (%): 8.88%MI, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 11.4k · Poor-condition share (%): 11.27%MN, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 13.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.44%MS, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 16.7k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.03%MO, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 24.6k · Poor-condition share (%): 8.95%MT, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 5.2k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.81%NE, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 15.4k · Poor-condition share (%): 7.9%NV, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 2.1k · Poor-condition share (%): 1.14%NH, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 2.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 7.51%NJ, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 6.8k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.01%NM, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 4k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.51%NY, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 17.6k · Poor-condition share (%): 9.43%NC, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 19.2k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.76%ND, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 4.3k · Poor-condition share (%): 10.98%OH, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 26.7k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.74%OK, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 22.9k · Poor-condition share (%): 7.7%OR, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 8.3k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.61%PA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 23.3k · Poor-condition share (%): 12.58%PR, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 2.4k · Poor-condition share (%): 13.92%RI, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 0.8k · Poor-condition share (%): 15.2%SC, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 9.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.17%SD, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 5.9k · Poor-condition share (%): 16.36%TN, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 20.4k · Poor-condition share (%): 4.41%TX, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 56.7k · Poor-condition share (%): 1.23%UT, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 3.1k · Poor-condition share (%): 2.91%VT, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 2.9k · Poor-condition share (%): 2.9%VI, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 0k · Poor-condition share (%): 29.17%VA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 14.1k · Poor-condition share (%): 3.39%WA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 8.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.45%WV, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 7.3k · Poor-condition share (%): 18.64%WI, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 14.4k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.52%WY, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 3.1k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.51%
Inventory size and Poor-condition share are different measures: Alabama has 16,205 bridges and a 3.4% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #10 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The dashed comparisons mark the national average state rate and the midpoint of the plotted inventory range; neither is a live safety or closure threshold.

Alabama vs all states by public bridge inventory

Where this state's FHWA NBI public-highway bridge count sits among every state and territory on PlainBridges

16,205 15th of 54 higher than 39 of 54 states

States and territories, banded by public bridge inventory size

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source FHWA National Bridge Inventory · 2024

Read the rank neighborhood for Alabama

The highlighted point is Alabama: 16,205 bridges and 3.35% in Poor condition, rank #10 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The five jurisdictions immediately above and below Alabama on that same Poor-share ordering:

  • Vermont: 2,862 bridges · 2.90% Poor
  • Utah: 3,125 bridges · 2.91% Poor
  • Alabama: 16,205 bridges · 3.35% Poor
  • Virginia: 14,120 bridges · 3.39% Poor
  • Tennessee: 20,379 bridges · 4.41% Poor

The full national sortable table lives on the rankings page.

Material families in Alabama

Exclusive FHWA material families across all 16,205 bridges in this state; continuous variants fold into the parent family. Orthogonal to the Poor-share scatter above.

Who maintains Alabama’s inventory

State agency holds 36.0% of the 16,205 public highway bridges filed under Alabama in the 2024 NBI, the agency-of-record split for this state, not a condition verdict.

When Alabama’s bridges were built

Pre-1950 construction accounts for 15.3% of the 16,205 bridges with a recorded original year in Alabama. Era bands are orthogonal to the Poor-share ranking above.

Condition Distribution

Alabama37%59.7%GoodFairPoor
Bridge inventory deck-condition mix - Alabama (FHWA NBI)

Counties (67)

Autauga 118 Baldwin 381 Barbour 192 Bibb 126 Blount 180 Bullock 136 Butler 189 Calhoun 386 Chambers 185 Cherokee 167 Chilton 189 Choctaw 154 Clarke 155 Clay 129 Cleburne 165 Coffee 216 Colbert 172 Conecuh 224 Coosa 126 Covington 332 Crenshaw 171 Cullman 246 Dale 206 Dallas 225 DeKalb 300 Elmore 202 Escambia 200 Etowah 236 Fayette 186 Franklin 194 Geneva 205 Greene 204 Hale 177 Henry 133 Houston 247 Jackson 314 Jefferson 1068 Lamar 181 Lauderdale 266 Lawrence 215 Lee 214 Limestone 324 Lowndes 157 Macon 177 Madison 710 Marengo 203 Marion 255 Marshall 172 Mobile 612 Monroe 142 Montgomery 596 Morgan 271 Perry 162 Pickens 233 Pike 169 Randolph 165 Russell 205 Shelby 344 St. Clair 183 Sumter 241 Talladega 243 Tallapoosa 149 Tuscaloosa 482 Walker 275 Washington 177 Wilcox 168 Winston 78

Alabama vs nearby ranks

Adjacent states by Poor-condition share (lower share = better)

States are ranked by the share of bridges whose lowest applicable component rating is 4 or below. This describes recorded condition; it does not measure funding effectiveness or live crossing safety. States here sit immediately above and below Alabama on the same metric.

VT

Vermont

2.90% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$2,862

UT

Utah

2.91% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$3,125
Selected

AL

Alabama

3.35% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$16,205

VA

Virginia

3.39% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$14,120

TN

Tennessee

4.41% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$20,379

Bridges Needing Most Attention in Alabama

Six lowest-condition bridges in Alabama, ranked by the portal's composite display score. Inspection intervals are risk-based under current NBIS rules.

COUNTRY CLUB ROAD

Poor

Over: BLACKWATER CREEK

1 MILE EAST HWY 195, Walker, AL

Built 1898 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 400

KINGS MILL ROAD

Poor

Over: LOST CREEK

1 MILE N OAKMAN HWY, Walker, AL

Built 1900 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 150

CAHABA BEACH ROAD

Poor

Over: LITTLE CAHABA RIVER

1.8 MILES NORTH OF US 280, Shelby, AL

Built 1904 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 100

19TH AVE

Poor

Over: MOORES CREEK

VALLEY, Chambers, AL

Built 1910 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 350

ROADWAY

Poor

Over: CO RT 1065 SUCARNOCHEE R

4.0 MI N CO RT 1064, Sumter, AL

Built 1912 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 40

SMITH CHAPEL RD

Poor

Over: MILL CREEK

1 MILE N HWY 78, Walker, AL

Built 1915 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 125

All Bridges in Alabama

Doe Lane

Fair

Over: Emuckfaw Creek

0.6 M E OF INT 558 554, Tallapoosa, AL

Built 1915 Load: 19.3 t ADT: 50

COUNTY DIRT RD

Fair

Over: WOLF CREEK

1/4 MI W OF ROGERS RD, Covington, AL

Built 1952 Load: 19.3 t ADT: 80

CO RT 188

Fair

Over: WEST FLINT CREEK

0.7MI E JCT CO RT 86, Lawrence, AL

Built 1995 Load: 19.3 t ADT: 25

HORNSBY RD.

Fair

Over: UT to PUMPKIN CREEK

.8mi E of 16 on HornsbyRd, Geneva, AL

Built 1957 Load: 19.3 t ADT: 40

MILL CREEK RD

Fair

Over: MILL CREEK

2 M. E OF US 231, Elmore, AL

Built 1970 Load: 19.3 t ADT: 20

SPEARS HILL ROAD

Fair

Over: DOUBLE BRIDGES CREEK

1.8 MI NE OF Sellersville, Geneva, AL

Built 1913 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 45

US 80

Fair

Over: ALABAMA RIVER

IN CITY OF SELMA, Dallas, AL

Built 1940 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 13,920

AL 14

Fair

Over: TALLAPOOSA RIVER

IN TOWN OF TALLASSEE, Elmore, AL

Built 1941 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 12,810

AL 41

Fair

Over: CEDAR CREEK

4.2 MI.N.AL 89, Dallas, AL

Built 1942 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 1,060

COUNTY HIGHWAY119

Fair

Over: BROCK BRANCH

2495 FT S JCT 1418, Marshall, AL

Built 1951 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 550

COUNTY HIGHWAY

Fair

Over: BURNT CORN CREEK

1.5 MI W APPLETON, Escambia, AL

Built 1959 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 410

COUNTY HIGHWAY

Fair

Over: LITTLE ESCAMBIA CREEK

3 MI WNW POLLARD, Escambia, AL

Built 1963 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 470

CO RT 39

Fair

Over: STREAM

4.2 MI N SR 24, Lawrence, AL

Built 1965 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 330

CR 532

Fair

Over: BRANCH

Cr 532, Cullman, AL

Built 1967 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 150

ATKINS ROAD

Fair

Over: BUCK CREEK

1/4 MILE W HWY 5, Walker, AL

Built 1970 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 50

CR-55

Fair

Over: Gold Branch

1.24 Miles SW of Unity, Coosa, AL

Built 1956 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 363

I-165 NB

Fair

Over: MULTIPLE STREETS STREAMS

DN TWN MOB TO CHICKASAW, Mobile, AL

Built 1994 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 21,946

AL 17

Fair

Over: NOXUBEE RIVER

3 MI. N. OF GEIGER, Sumter, AL

Built 1939 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 950

AL 41

Fair

Over: MUSH CREEK

3.0MI.S.CO. RD. 30, Dallas, AL

Built 1939 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 1,650

Brenson Creek Road

Fair

Over: BRENSON BRANCH

SEC 23 T17N R19E, Elmore, AL

Built 1968 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 20

CO 385

Fair

Over: CHEAHA CREEK

3.3 MI E ALA 21, Talladega, AL

Built 1952 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 500

COUNTY ROAD 42

Fair

Over: SEPULGA RIVER

0.5 MI. S.E. BROOKLYN, Conecuh, AL

Built 1954 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 309

RIVERTON RD

Fair

Over: BRIER FORK FLINT RIVER

1.0 MI SO CO RD 450, Madison, AL

Built 1955 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 520

COUNTY ROAD

Fair

Over: BRUSHY CREEK

1.3 MI. E. LANDFILLRD., Monroe, AL

Built 1960 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 75

CHEROKEE #828

Fair

Over: CREEK

0.1 MI SE INT CHERO #41, Cherokee, AL

Built 1963 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 50

CO. 177

Fair

Over: BRANCH

1.5 MI. S.E. CUSSETA, Chambers, AL

Built 1968 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 913

6TH STREET

Fair

Over: STREAM

0.2MI N US 31, Chilton, AL

Built 1974 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 7,200

L. VAUGHN RD.

Fair

Over: ADAMS CREEK

6 MI NORTH OF GENEVA, Geneva, AL

Built 1947 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 35

R8 (I565W-US231N)

Fair

Over: CITY STREETS ;CRK

RAMP 8 BUS DEPOT, Madison, AL

Built 1991 Load: 19.5 t ADT: 10,716

CO RT 26

Fair

Over: STREAM

0.5 MI E JCT CO RT 23, Lawrence, AL

Built 1948 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 133

CO. 260

Fair

Over: GAY CREEK

2 MI. N.E. FIVE POINTS, Chambers, AL

Built 1950 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 15

Sewell Road

Fair

Over: WEOKA CREEK

SEC.20 T20N R18E, Elmore, AL

Built 1951 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 360

CO RT 22

Fair

Over: FLINT CREEK

0.9 MI E JCT CO RT 61, Lawrence, AL

Built 1956 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 1,355

CR #21

Fair

Over: BEAR CREEK

1.4 MI S SR 22 W, Dallas, AL

Built 1963 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 100

County Road 45

Fair

Over: Grizzard Branch

3 MILES NORTH OF GUIN, Marion, AL

Built 1919 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 300

SARDIS ROAD

Fair

Over: CROOKED CREEK

4 MI W US 31 MORRIS, Jefferson, AL

Built 1971 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 717

CR # 178

Fair

Over: BOGUE CHITTO CREEK

2.4 MI W SR 80, Dallas, AL

Built 1977 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 25

I-165 SB

Fair

Over: MULTIPLE STREETS STREAMS

CHICKASAW TO DWN TWN MOB, Mobile, AL

Built 1994 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 21,946

GROVE ROAD

Fair

Over: MURDER CREEK

.6 MI S.W. BOOKERS MILL, Conecuh, AL

Built 2001 Load: 19.6 t ADT: 30

SR4/US78

Fair

Over: SOX CREEK

TOWN OF EDWARDSVILLE, Cleburne, AL

Built 1929 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 2,600

F.A.S.12

Fair

Over: CAHABA RIVER

2.MI NW AL25 CO 27, Bibb, AL

Built 1952 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 262

FAS 26 CR 85

Fair

Over: TOWN CREEK

3.2 MI NW JCT SR 09T6SR9E, DeKalb, AL

Built 1952 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 2,512

AL 219

Fair

Over: BEAVERDAM CREEK

1.8 MI S BIBB CO LINE, Perry, AL

Built 1957 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 928

SR 217

Fair

Over: PUPPY CREEK

8.5 MI N CO RD 63, Mobile, AL

Built 1964 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 1,223

SR 148

Fair

Over: HATCHET CREEK

0.1 MI E JCT CO 7, Clay, AL

Built 1965 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 872

CO RD 43

Fair

Over: SELLERS BRANCH

6.6 MI. N ON CO RD 43, Wilcox, AL

Built 1966 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 150

CO. 160

Fair

Over: CARLISLE CREEK

0.6 MI. W. ROCK FENCE, Chambers, AL

Built 1968 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 35

ROCKY HOLLOW RD.

Fair

Over: OHATCHEE CREEK

ROCKY HOLLOW RD., Calhoun, AL

Built 1970 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 971

SR 37 MP 0.748

Fair

Over: WIREGRASS CENTRAL RR

TANK HILL GATE FT RUCKER, Dale, AL

Built 1943 Load: 19.7 t ADT: 80

CO. RT. 1807

Fair

Over: HURRICANE BRANCH

CR 1807, Cullman, AL

Built 1943 Load: 19.8 t ADT: 160

Showing 951-1,000 of 16,205 bridges

Related

All states → | National rankings → | Understanding conditions → | Retired SD term explained →
Data sourced from the FHWA National Bridge Inventory (NBI), latest released cycle. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainBridges.

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the FHWA National Bridge Inventory (NBI). Poor condition is an inspection-record category, not a closure or unsafe-to-cross designation. Consult the bridge owner for current status.

Understanding Bridge Conditions

How FHWA rates bridge condition on a 0-9 scale.

Check Your Daily Bridges

How to look up bridge condition data for bridges on your route.

Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

What to do with this

Use Alabama's inventory picture to drill to a county or a specific span.

  • Browse counties in Alabama and open the highest-Poor shares first. County list
  • See where this state sits among peers on Poor-condition share. State rankings
  • Compare this state with another jurisdiction on the same measures. State compare

NBI condition ratings are inventory snapshots, not live crossing-safety verdicts.

Every figure on PlainBridges is rendered directly from federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. Alabama Good/Fair/Poor shares and county rollups on this page are computed from the same NBI extract as the national boards; no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2024 NBI release. NBI condition categories reflect the latest reported inventory record, not a live safety, closure, or travel decision.