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 211-01- LM 1.55

Fair

Over: BURKE DITCH

2.5 Mi S of Success, Clay, AR

Built 1961 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 550

State Highway 215

Fair

Over: Creek-Crawford Co.

0.9 MI N I 40, Crawford, AR

Built 1963 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 900

SH 215

Fair

Over: Bowen Creek

6.50 M W of county line, Johnson, AR

Built 1950 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 127

SH 233/Indepen Co.

Fair

Over: TWO MILE CREEK

3.1 MI E JCT SH 69 & 233, Independence, AR

Built 1947 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 710

SH 246 Polk Co.

Fair

Over: Little Hickory Creek

0.97 MI E JCT US 71 & 246, Polk, AR

Built 1965 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 670

US Highway 270

Fair

Over: North Creek Polk Co.

13.87 MI E OKLA ST LINE, Polk, AR

Built 1956 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 980

SH 296 -01-11.03

Fair

Over: CREEK

11.1 MI E JCT SH 67 & 296, Miller, AR

Built 1964 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 49

SH 300 Log 16.54

Fair

Over: Spillway Ditch

3.5 MI N SH 10, Pulaski, AR

Built 1956 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 3,400

SH 367 Log 5.17

Fair

Over: DITCH

0.1 M S OF SH 338, Pulaski, AR

Built 1943 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 11,000

I-30 WB Log 101.49

Fair

Over: CREEK

3.5 MI N JCT US 270, Hot Spring, AR

Built 1964 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 2,996

I-30 EB Log 101.49

Fair

Over: CREEK

3.5 MI N JCT US 270, Hot Spring, AR

Built 1964 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 36,000

SH 138-03 LM 7.70

Fair

Over: Lower Cut-Off Creek

7.70 Mi N US278-Pine Hill, Drew, AR

Built 1967 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,100

SH 138-03 LM 7.82

Fair

Over: Lower Cut-Off Creek

7.82 Mi N US278-Pine Hill, Drew, AR

Built 1967 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,100

SH 138-03 LM 9.60

Fair

Over: Cut-Off Creek Relief

9.60 Mi N US 278-Mt Tabor, Drew, AR

Built 1967 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,100

SH 381 log 0.39

Fair

Over: WHITEOAK BRANCH

.4 MI S OF US 70, Lonoke, AR

Built 1968 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 530

SH 54-09 LM 7.75

Fair

Over: Creek

1.9 Mi E US 79-Faith, Jefferson, AR

Built 1970 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 304

Us-49/Sec-6/L11.96

Fair

Over: Canal

1.5 Mi North Of Jct Us 64, Cross, AR

Built 1973 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,000

SH 72 Benton 2

Fair

Over: SPRING BRANCH

0.25 MI E JCT SH 43 & 72, Benton, AR

Built 1932 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 2,399

US 278 - 06 - 3.54

Fair

Over: BODCAU CREEK

3.5 MI E OF HOPE, Hempstead, AR

Built 1974 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,764

SH 128-8 Log 0.45

Fair

Over: SANDERS CREEK

0.45 MI N SH 84 JCT, Hot Spring, AR

Built 1955 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,200

SH226-03S- LM 0.44

Fair

Over: VILLAGE CREEK

.44 E JCT SH 349, Craighead, AR

Built 1939 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 790

SH 200 SEC.01-3.69

Fair

Over: TIDWELL BRANCH

3.5MI NE OF ROSSTON, Nevada, AR

Built 1978 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 370

SH 159-08 LM 2.36

Fair

Over: Canal Number 19

2.36 Mi N SH138-Winchestr, Desha, AR

Built 1980 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 434

SH 133-06 LM 0.46

Fair

Over: Cane Creek

0.46 Mi N ClevlndCo-Faith, Jefferson, AR

Built 1993 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 780

State Highway 80

Fair

Over: Bud Branch-Scott Co.

1.9 MI SW OF YELL CO LINE, Scott, AR

Built 1968 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 650

US Highway 270

Fair

Over: Wamon Branch

9.02 MI E JCT US 71 & 270, Scott, AR

Built 1969 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,017

US Highway 71

Fair

Over: Ditch - Scott Co.

WALDRON BYPASS US 71, Scott, AR

Built 1972 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 4,401

US 71 - Scott Co.

Fair

Over: Scott Creek

1.0 MI S SH 28, Scott, AR

Built 1972 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 5,476

SH 304-02- LM 3.25

Fair

Over: BEAVER DAM DITCH

2.23 MI W OF SH 90, Greene, AR

Built 1974 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 700

SH395/Fulton Co.

Fair

Over: MILL CREEK

8.6 MI N JCT SH 9 & 395, Fulton, AR

Built 1976 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 700

SH 41-SEC.01- 9.17

Fair

Over: MILL CREEK

SO EDGE OF HORATIO, Sevier, AR

Built 1980 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 2,400

I-49 Benton 2

Fair

Over: DITCH

1.2 MI N SH 264, Benton, AR

Built 1982 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 79,000

US 270-7 Log 0.74

Fair

Over: BRANCH TIGRE CK

0.74 MI E GARLAN CO LN, Hot Spring, AR

Built 1960 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 13,000

SH 84 SEC 0

Fair

Over: Cross Creek - Polk Co.

3.4 MI W JCT US 71, Polk, AR

Built 1985 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 200

SH 7 LM 9.38

Fair

Over: BIG HILL CREEK

6.34 MI SW OF GARLAND CO, Hot Spring, AR

Built 1985 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 6,300

CR 4-G 911=S343

Fair

Over: SANDY BAYOU

1.5 MI NE OF BASSETT ARK, Mississippi, AR

Built 1985 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 45

SH 16 WHITE CO.

Fair

Over: BRIER CREEK

.25 MI S PANGBURN, White, AR

Built 1985 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 4,600

Collum Lane

Fair

Over: Mona Creek

1.3 MI W SH 71, Crawford, AR

Built 1988 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,870

SH301-SEC.01-19.52

Fair

Over: CREEK

0.2 M WEST JCT SH 29, Pike, AR

Built 1991 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 130

US 371 S-6 LM 8.83

Fair

Over: CREEK

1.25 MI S OF WALDO, Columbia, AR

Built 1992 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 3,900

SH 90-03- LM 9.19

Fair

Over: CREEK

PEACH ORCHARD, Clay, AR

Built 1993 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 640

SH 90-02- LM 4.51

Fair

Over: DRAINAGE DITCH

4.51 MI NW JCT US 49, Clay, AR

Built 2004 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 1,348

SH 163-05-4.67

Fair

Over: CREEK

0.10 MI SO JCT SH 1B, Craighead, AR

Built 2005 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 3,866

SE Walton Blvd

Fair

Over: DITCH

.3 MI E JCT SH 112 & 71, Benton, AR

Built 2005 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 35,000

Highway 22 Sec. 1

Fair

Over: Creek Sebastian Co.

1.5 MI E Jct SH 22 & 59, Sebastian, AR

Built 2010 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 16,000

SH 59 Benton 2

Fair

Over: BRANCH

0.9 MI S JCT SH 12, Benton, AR

Built 2008 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 15,813

US 64

Fair

Over: Cypress Bayou Relief

1.45 M E JCT HWY 64 & 107, Faulkner, AR

Built 2010 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 6,300

US Highway 62

Fair

Over: Ditch - Wash. Co.

0.11 mi South of CR 22, Washington, AR

Built 2012 Load: 21.8 t ADT: 8,644

US 71 SEC.01- 5.03

Fair

Over: KELLEY BAYOU

5 MILES N. LOUISIANA SL., Miller, AR

Built 1942 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 625

SH 14 Marion

Fair

Over: CROOKED CREEK

0.16 MI S JCT US 62-SH 14, Marion, AR

Built 1959 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 5,190

Showing 2,001-2,050 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.