State profile · Below median Poor share

Arkansas 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 Arkansas.

12,974
Public bridges
45.8%
Good condition
5.4%
Poor condition

Arkansas holds 12,974 public highway bridges (#23 of 52 by inventory) with a 5.43% Poor share (#30 of 52 by Poor share).

That is 5.4% 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 23 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

12,974

Public highway bridges in Arkansas

Good Condition

45.8%

5,940 bridges rated 7-9

-4.2pp vs 50% benchmark

Poor Condition

5.4%

704 bridges whose lowest applicable component is rated 0-4

-2.1pp vs national avg 7.5%

Arkansas vs national bridge condition

Arkansas - Good condition share 45.8%
National avg

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

Arkansas - Poor-condition share 18.1%
National avg

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

Arkansas 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: Arkansas has 12,974 bridges and a 5.4% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #23 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 (%) AR, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 13k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.43%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%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: Arkansas has 12,974 bridges and a 5.4% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #23 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.

Arkansas 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

12,974 23rd of 54 higher than 31 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 Arkansas

The highlighted point is Arkansas: 12,974 bridges and 5.43% in Poor condition, rank #23 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The five jurisdictions immediately above and below Arkansas on that same Poor-share ordering:

  • Indiana: 19,495 bridges · 5.22% Poor
  • Kansas: 24,894 bridges · 5.26% Poor
  • Arkansas: 12,974 bridges · 5.43% Poor
  • Washington: 8,474 bridges · 5.45% Poor
  • California: 25,848 bridges · 5.91% Poor

The full national sortable table lives on the rankings page.

Material families in Arkansas

Exclusive FHWA material families across all 12,974 bridges in this state; continuous variants fold into the parent family. Orthogonal to the Poor-share scatter above.

Who maintains Arkansas’s inventory

State agency holds 57.1% of the 12,974 public highway bridges filed under Arkansas in the 2024 NBI, the agency-of-record split for this state, not a condition verdict.

When Arkansas’s bridges were built

Pre-1950 construction accounts for 13.5% of the 12,974 bridges with a recorded original year in Arkansas. Era bands are orthogonal to the Poor-share ranking above.

Condition Distribution

Arkansas45.8%48.8%GoodFairPoor
Bridge inventory deck-condition mix - Arkansas (FHWA NBI)

Counties (75)

Arkansas 154 Ashley 106 Baxter 91 Benton 410 Boone 98 Bradley 105 Calhoun 114 Carroll 119 Chicot 88 Clark 202 Clay 200 Cleburne 53 Cleveland 79 Columbia 131 Conway 122 Craighead 442 Crawford 248 Crittenden 235 Cross 129 Dallas 103 Desha 83 Drew 149 Faulkner 219 Franklin 143 Fulton 105 Garland 319 Grant 119 Greene 251 Hempstead 174 Hot Spring 222 Howard 116 Independence 184 Izard 105 Jackson 136 Jefferson 336 Johnson 162 Lafayette 72 Lawrence 126 Lee 94 Lincoln 110 Little River 83 Logan 152 Lonoke 187 Madison 149 Marion 65 Miller 216 Mississippi 309 Monroe 85 Montgomery 199 Nevada 133 Newton 65 Ouachita 162 Perry 118 Phillips 101 Pike 95 Poinsett 194 Polk 221 Pope 188 Prairie 88 Pulaski 721 Randolph 151 Saline 231 Scott 198 Searcy 65 Sebastian 331 Sevier 164 Sharp 110 St. Francis 202 Stone 73 Union 289 Van Buren 98 Washington 449 White 322 Woodruff 79 Yell 227

Arkansas 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 Arkansas on the same metric.

IN

Indiana

5.22% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$19,495

KS

Kansas

5.26% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$24,894
Selected

AR

Arkansas

5.43% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$12,974

WA

Washington

5.45% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$8,474

CA

California

5.91% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$25,848

Bridges Needing Most Attention in Arkansas

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

CR 870-H OLD US 63

Poor

Over: DITCH 123

.10 MI E JCT SH 14, Poinsett, AR

Built 1933 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 667

SH 140-02- LM 9.08

Poor

Over: NATIONAL DITCH

1.7 MI E JCT SH 77, Mississippi, AR

Built 1967 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 2,900

Bucklake/Z-Ew/3.10

Poor

Over: Ditch Number 21

3.1 Miles West Of Sh 50, Crittenden, AR

Built 1955 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 360

CR20 -G 911- 108

Poor

Over: Union Pacific Railroad

0.91 M E Jct. SH 349, Craighead, AR

Built 1957 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 174

Cr74/Fulton Co.

Poor

Over: SPRING RIVER

2 M SE MAMMOTH SPRINGS, Fulton, AR

Built 1916 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 779

BOWEN BR. C.R. 244

Poor

Over: LITTLE MO RIVER

.75 M S SH 301, Hempstead, AR

Built 1944 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 9

All Bridges in Arkansas

SH 42 / Jackson Co

Poor

Over: CREEK

0.6 MI E JCT SH 42 & 145, Jackson, AR

Built 1962 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 350

SH 56 Izard County

Poor

Over: CREEK

0.1 MI W JCT SH 289 & 56, Izard, AR

Built 1955 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,867

State Highway 96

Poor

Over: Mill Creek

1.5 MI W FRANKLIN CO L, Sebastian, AR

Built 1962 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 200

SH 160 S-5 LM 3.83

Poor

Over: Silver Creek

3.83 MI NE OF MT HOLLY, Union, AR

Built 1961 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 430

Sh-350/Sec-2/L0.58

Poor

Over: Turrey Creek

.58 Mi North Jct Sh 284, Cross, AR

Built 1976 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,100

US 64-Crawford Co.

Poor

Over: Big Mulberry River

1 MI E JCT 215 IN MULBERY, Crawford, AR

Built 1929 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,810

US67 Sec4 Lm 0.01

Poor

Over: LITTLE MISSOURI RIVER

2.2 MI S SH 51, Clark, AR

Built 1931 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,492

US 71 SEC.06- 1.49

Poor

Over: LITTLE RUSSEY CREEK

1.5 MI N OF LOCKESBURG, Sevier, AR

Built 1937 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 6,000

N MAIN STREET

Poor

Over: W 9TH ST & UPRR

Main and 9th Street, Pulaski, AR

Built 1927 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 19,253

US 71 - Polk Co

Poor

Over: Six Mile Creek

1.5 MI S OF Hatfield, Polk, AR

Built 1940 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 5,100

US 65-22 LM 0.40

Poor

Over: Bayou Macon

0.40 Mi S SH 8-Eudora, Chicot, AR

Built 1946 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 2,000

State Highway 45

Poor

Over: Hackett Creek-Seb. Co.

0.15 M N OF HACKETT, Sebastian, AR

Built 1941 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,920

SH 140-01- LM 9.93

Poor

Over: LITTLE RIVER

0.2 MI E JCT SH 135, Poinsett, AR

Built 1948 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 3,500

SH 66/Stone County

Poor

Over: TIMBO CREEK

0.4 MI W SH 263, Stone, AR

Built 1956 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,600

SH 23-Franklin Co.

Poor

Over: North White Oak Creek

0.75 Mi N SH 352, Franklin, AR

Built 1951 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,732

SH 43 Benton 2

Poor

Over: TOWN CREEK

0.1 MI N JCT SH 72- SH 43, Benton, AR

Built 1958 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 3,090

Sh-42/Sec-2/L-6.42

Poor

Over: Brushy Lake

5.3 Miles East Jct Us 49, Cross, AR

Built 1956 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 609

State Highway 240

Poor

Over: Caddo River-Montgomery

.03 M W jct of SH 8, Montgomery, AR

Built 1966 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 700

Ouachita CR 2 Z-H

Poor

Over: GUM CREEK

2.1 MI W JCT CR 55, Ouachita, AR

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,831

Ouachita CR 2 Z-H

Poor

Over: REED CREEK

.4 MI SW JCT CR 47, Ouachita, AR

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,831

Ouachita CR 2 Z-H

Poor

Over: MILL CREEK

.2 MI SW JCT CR 47, Ouachita, AR

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,831

SH 239-02- LM 4.71

Poor

Over: PEMISCOT BAYOU

4.7 MI W JCT SH 18, Mississippi, AR

Built 1966 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 340

SH 25-06- LM 4.91

Poor

Over: STEEP BANK CREEK

4.91 MI N INDEPENDENCE CO, Lawrence, AR

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,000

Columbia CR-7 Z-H

Poor

Over: CYPRESS CREEK

1 MI S JCT 9 & 7, Columbia, AR

Built 1956 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 120

Madison Co Rd 16

Poor

Over: GLADE CREEK

2.5 MI SE HINDSVILLE, Madison, AR

Built 1939 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 630

Ouachita CR247 Z-C

Poor

Over: CREEK

.05 MI N JCT 247& 518, Ouachita, AR

Built 1945 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 68

Prairie Grove Lake

Poor

Over: Sulphur Fork

0.3 W CO.RD 28, Washington, AR

Built 1965 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 644

Double Springs Rd

Poor

Over: Hamestring Creek

0.95 M N JCT HWY 16, Washington, AR

Built 1970 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,000

Calhoun CR19 Z-C

Poor

Over: CREEK

3.09 MI S HWY 278, Calhoun, AR

Built 1977 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,153

N. Pearcy CR 104 H

Poor

Over: MAZARN CREEK

6.60 M E MONT CO LINE, Garland, AR

Built 1970 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,000

Caldwell St.

Poor

Over: Coop Creek-Scott Co.

0.10 M S US 71 & CALDWELL, Scott, AR

Built 1965 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 321

E 8th Street-CS

Poor

Over: Imbeau Bayou

0.46 Mi E Main St-PB, Jefferson, AR

Built 1967 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 3,300

Bradley CR 4 Z-F

Poor

Over: Charivari Creek

1.5 mi. S Jct CR 2, Bradley, AR

Built 2004 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4

Baker Lake Rd

Poor

Over: E. Fork Point Remove Crk

2.1 mi West of Jct. SH 9, Van Buren, AR

Built 2005 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 276

SH 66/Stone County

Poor

Over: TUBBS CREEK

2.16 MI W JCT SH 9 MT VIE, Stone, AR

Built 1955 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,286

SH 66/Stone County

Poor

Over: LICK FORK CREEK

4.14 M W Jct SH9 Mtn View, Stone, AR

Built 1955 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,286

State Highway 23

Poor

Over: Arkansas River & Uprr

0.125 MI SO OF OZARK, Franklin, AR

Built 1930 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 6,925

SH 8 S-6 LM 9.92

Poor

Over: W FORK TULIP CK RELIEF

9.99 MI EAST OF SH 7, Dallas, AR

Built 1954 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 261

SH 8 S-6 LM 10.02

Poor

Over: WEST FORK TULIP CREEK

10.03 MI EAST OF SH 7, Dallas, AR

Built 1954 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 261

CR 151

Poor

Over: Vineyard Branch-Seb. Co.

0.3 MI N OF US 71, Sebastian, AR

Built 1925 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 469

SH 146-01 LM 5.33

Poor

Over: Canal

5.33 Mi E US 79-Stuttgart, Arkansas, AR

Built 1921 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 690

Sh-33/Sec-7/L-9.16

Poor

Over: Cache Bayou

8.0 Mi South Sh 260 Jct, Woodruff, AR

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 475

SH 130-06 LM 24.96

Poor

Over: Prices Branch

0.35 Mi N SH 1B-DeWitt, Arkansas, AR

Built 1967 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,300

SH 140-02-LM 12.11

Poor

Over: DITCH 40

.1 MI E JCT SH 181, Mississippi, AR

Built 1960 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,185

US 67-19- LM 3.40

Poor

Over: FOURCHE

3.34 MI NE JCT US 62, Randolph, AR

Built 1928 Load: 23.6 t ADT: 6,600

US 71-SEC.05-11.46

Poor

Over: BIG BELLVILLE CREEK

1.5 MI S JCT. S.H24 & 371, Sevier, AR

Built 1934 Load: 23.6 t ADT: 4,600

SH 58 Sharp County

Poor

Over: BIG CREEK

1.13 MI N JCT OF SH 115, Sharp, AR

Built 1934 Load: 23.6 t ADT: 550

US 82B S5 LM 2.42

Poor

Over: UN PAC RR & Jackson St

0.1 MI E JCT S WEST AVE, Union, AR

Built 1935 Load: 23.6 t ADT: 11,000

SH 16 Madison

Poor

Over: WHITE RIVER

5.93 MI E OF JCT SH 23, Madison, AR

Built 1935 Load: 23.6 t ADT: 500

Sh-147/Sec-1/L0.76

Poor

Over: Fish Bayou

.73 Mi No Jct Of Sh 131, Crittenden, AR

Built 1935 Load: 23.6 t ADT: 904

Showing 12,701-12,750 of 12,974 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 Arkansas's inventory picture to drill to a county or a specific span.

  • Browse counties in Arkansas 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. Arkansas 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.