State profile · Below median Poor share

California 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 California.

25,848
Public bridges
45.6%
Good condition
5.9%
Poor condition

California holds 25,848 public highway bridges (#4 of 52 by inventory) with a 5.91% Poor share (#28 of 52 by Poor share).

That is 5.9% 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 25 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

25,848

Public highway bridges in California

Good Condition

45.6%

11,798 bridges rated 7-9

-4.4pp vs 50% benchmark

Poor Condition

5.9%

1,527 bridges whose lowest applicable component is rated 0-4

-1.6pp vs national avg 7.5%

California vs national bridge condition

California - Good condition share 45.6%
National avg

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

California - Poor-condition share 19.7%
National avg

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

California 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: California has 25,848 bridges and a 5.9% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #25 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 (%) CA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 25.8k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.91%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%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: California has 25,848 bridges and a 5.9% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #25 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.

California 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

25,848 4th of 54 higher than 50 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 California

The highlighted point is California: 25,848 bridges and 5.91% in Poor condition, rank #25 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The five jurisdictions immediately above and below California on that same Poor-share ordering:

  • Arkansas: 12,974 bridges · 5.43% Poor
  • Washington: 8,474 bridges · 5.45% Poor
  • California: 25,848 bridges · 5.91% Poor
  • New Jersey: 6,827 bridges · 6.01% Poor
  • Mississippi: 16,739 bridges · 6.03% Poor

The full national sortable table lives on the rankings page.

Material families in California

Exclusive FHWA material families across all 25,848 bridges in this state; continuous variants fold into the parent family. Orthogonal to the Poor-share scatter above.

Who maintains California’s inventory

State agency holds 48.8% of the 25,848 public highway bridges filed under California in the 2024 NBI, the agency-of-record split for this state, not a condition verdict.

When California’s bridges were built

Pre-1950 construction accounts for 15.5% of the 25,848 bridges with a recorded original year in California. Era bands are orthogonal to the Poor-share ranking above.

Condition Distribution

California45.6%48.4%GoodFairPoor
Bridge inventory deck-condition mix - California (FHWA NBI)

Counties (58)

Alameda 658 Alpine 32 Amador 61 Butte 437 Calaveras 105 Colusa 211 Contra Costa 618 Del Norte 96 El Dorado 192 Fresno 916 Glenn 242 Humboldt 396 Imperial 444 Inyo 66 Kern 668 Kings 168 Lake 129 Lassen 108 Los Angeles 3547 Madera 247 Marin 207 Mariposa 109 Mendocino 357 Merced 528 Modoc 87 Mono 49 Monterey 377 Napa 158 Nevada 135 Orange 1164 Placer 337 Plumas 165 Riverside 1117 Sacramento 740 San Benito 76 San Bernardino 1422 San Diego 1632 San Francisco 143 San Joaquin 644 San Luis Obispo 401 San Mateo 361 Santa Barbara 418 Santa Clara 964 Santa Cruz 192 Shasta 492 Sierra 65 Siskiyou 421 Solano 373 Sonoma 609 Stanislaus 386 Sutter 121 Tehama 450 Trinity 194 Tulare 589 Tuolumne 125 Ventura 501 Yolo 271 Yuba 127

California 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 California on the same metric.

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
Selected

CA

California

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

NJ

New Jersey

6.01% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$6,827

MS

Mississippi

6.03% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$16,739

Bridges Needing Most Attention in California

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

OLD COTTONWOOD CR

Poor

Over: COTTONWOOD CREEK

0.2 MI E/O COTTONWOOD CK, Siskiyou, CA

Built 1957 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 10

STATE ROUTE 211

Poor

Over: EEL RIVER

01-HUM-211-78.10, Humboldt, CA

Built 1911 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 5,300

CR 305 (MAPES RD)

Poor

Over: HARTSON SLOUGH

0.4 MI E/O RD 303, Lassen, CA

Built 1978 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 100

CR 111 (PITTVILLE)

Poor

Over: BEAVER CREEK

1.0 MI S OF CR 404, Lassen, CA

Built 1975 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 100

RD 424 (BASSETT)

Poor

Over: WILLOW CREEK

1.5 MI N OF RD A-2, Lassen, CA

Built 1960 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 120

CR417 (PUNKIN CTR)

Poor

Over: MUDDY SLOUGH NO 1

2.8 MI S OF CR A2, Lassen, CA

Built 1955 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 200

All Bridges in California

TOPAZ LANE

Good

Over: WEST WALKER RIVER

0.1 MI E RTE 395 PM 114, Mono, CA

Built 1938 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 83

U.S. HIGHWAY 6

Good

Over: BISHOP CREEK

09-INY-006-0.45-BIS, Inyo, CA

Built 1937 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 4,550

US HIGHWAY 101 SB

Good

Over: UP RR AMTRAK N101-SPRING

05-SLO-101-55.72-PSRS, San Luis Obispo, CA

Built 1958 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 30,500

SANTA ROSA CR RD

Good

Over: ROCKY CREEK

1.0 MI NW SR 46, San Luis Obispo, CA

Built 1948 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,204

INTERSTATE 605

Good

Over: TELEGRAPH RD

07-LA-605-R10.25-SFSP, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1965 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 264,000

INTERSTATE 210 WB

Good

Over: ROSEMEAD BLVD

07-LA-210-R29.49-PAS, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1971 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 147,000

ROSCOE BLVD

Good

Over: ALISO CREEK

0.1 MI W/O WILBUR AVE., Los Angeles, CA

Built 1955 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 35,929

VAL VISTA ST

Good

Over: SAN JOSE CRK

0.1MI N/O I-10 FWY, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1964 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 2,538

BARTON RD

Good

Over: BNSF RY AMTRAK METROLINK

0.1 MI E LA CADENA DR, San Bernardino, CA

Built 1936 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 9,847

MT VERNON AVE

Good

Over: LYTLE CAJON CHANNEL

1.25 MI N OF I-10, San Bernardino, CA

Built 1945 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 13,562

CAUGHLIN ROAD

Good

Over: CALIFORNIA AQUEDUCT

3.3 MI N OF PHELAN RD, San Bernardino, CA

Built 1971 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 220

STATE ROUTE 111 SB

Good

Over: UP RR & AMTRAK

08-RIV-111-R62.93, Riverside, CA

Built 1966 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 7,140

STATE ROUTE 111 NB

Good

Over: UP RR & AMTRAK

08-RIV-111-R62.93, Riverside, CA

Built 1966 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 7,140

KIRBY STREET

Good

Over: WHITTIER AVENUE CHANNEL

0.47 MI. N/O STETSON AVE., Riverside, CA

Built 1972 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 13,000

STATE ROUTE 52 EB

Good

Over: REGENTS ROAD

11-SD-052-1.35-SD, San Diego, CA

Built 1970 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 49,500

US HIGHWAY 101 SB

Good

Over: WEST END RD CREEK NCRRA

01-HUM-101-87.84-ARC, Humboldt, CA

Built 1956 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 17,500

MATTOLE RD

Good

Over: CUNEO CREEK

7 MI W/O HWY 101, Humboldt, CA

Built 1966 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 1,000

STATE ROUTE 99

Good

Over: SALT CREEK OVERFLOW

02-TEH-099-24.78, Tehama, CA

Built 1924 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 9,300

CAPAY RD

Good

Over: RICE CREEK

3.5 MI E OF RD 99 W, Tehama, CA

Built 1919 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 982

MALTON SWITCH ROAD

Good

Over: TEHAMA-COLUSA CANAL

0.2 MI E INGHRAGM RD, Tehama, CA

Built 1965 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 211

MARGUERITE AVE

Good

Over: TEHAMA-COLUSA CANAL

0.1 MI S FLOURNOY RD, Tehama, CA

Built 1965 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 310

STATE ROUTE 162

Good

Over: WALKER CREEK

03-GLE-162-68.16, Glenn, CA

Built 1942 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 3,050

STATE ROUTE 162

Good

Over: MFK FEATHER RI BIDWELL

03-BUT-162-26.87, Butte, CA

Built 1965 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 1,500

MARYSVILLE RD

Good

Over: OREGON HOUSE CREEK

0.2 MI W OREGON HOUSE JCT, Yuba, CA

Built 1964 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 2,400

MC COURTNEY ROAD

Good

Over: DOTY RAVINE

0.7 MI N OF WISE RD, Placer, CA

Built 1998 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 2,021

OLD GRAVENSTEIN HY

Good

Over: BLUCHER CREEK

0.25 MI N OF S.H. 116, Sonoma, CA

Built 1925 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 1,562

LARKMEAD LANE

Good

Over: NAPA RIVER

0.6 MI N OF S.R. 29, Napa, CA

Built 1926 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 484

INTERSTATE 5 SB

Good

Over: UP RR BNSF AMTRAK I ST

03-SAC-005-23.59-SAC, Sacramento, CA

Built 1969 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 92,500

WHITE ROCK RD

Good

Over: FOLSOM SOUTH CANAL

0.1 MI W SUNRISE BLVD, Sacramento, CA

Built 1970 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 18,672

EL NIDO RANCH RD

Good

Over: LAFAYETTE AQUEDUCT

0.1 MI N MT DIABLO, Contra Costa, CA

Built 1969 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 2,843

LIVORNA RD

Good

Over: SAN RAMON CREEK

AT RTE 680, Contra Costa, CA

Built 1971 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 7,924

STATE ROUTE 99 SB

Good

Over: STANISLAUS RIVER

10-SJ-099-0.00, San Joaquin, CA

Built 1903 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 53,500

WHIPPLE AVENUE

Good

Over: US HIGHWAY 101

04-SM-101-6.62-RDWC, San Mateo, CA

Built 1958 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 201,000

STATE ROUTE 9

Good

Over: WEST BRANCH SARATOGA CRK

04-SCL-009-3.60, Santa Clara, CA

Built 1924 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 2,450

CAPITOL EXPRESSWAY

Good

Over: U.S. HIGHWAY 101

04-SCL-101-31.70-SJS, Santa Clara, CA

Built 1965 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 43,338

MONTEREY ROAD

Good

Over: LLAGAS CREEK

0.25 MI N CALIF AVE, Santa Clara, CA

Built 1938 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 11,440

FENTEM ROAD

Good

Over: CCID MAIN CANAL

0.4 MI E WHITWORTH RD, Merced, CA

Built 1925 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 120

TOLLHOUSE RD

Good

Over: DRY CREEK

0.8 MI N/O PITTMAN HILL R, Fresno, CA

Built 1925 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 1,600

N JERROLD AVE

Good

Over: 3RD LIFT CANAL

0.7 MI SOUTH OF NEES AVE, Fresno, CA

Built 1945 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 250

U.S. HIGHWAY 101

Good

Over: SAN JUAN CREEK

05-SBT-101-4.93, San Benito, CA

Built 1931 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 51,000

STATE ROUTE 1

Good

Over: HILLSIDE ABOVE OCEAN

05-MON-001-12.13, Monterey, CA

Built 1985 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 2,000

JACKSON AVE

Good

Over: KINGS RIV (E CHANNEL)

1.2 MI W 21ST AVE, Kings, CA

Built 1922 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 750

ROAD 152

Good

Over: OUTSIDE CREEK

0.1 MI NORTH OF AVE 224, Tulare, CA

Built 1948 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 930

ELMO HWY

Good

Over: STATE ROUTE 99

06-KER-099-50.41, Kern, CA

Built 1963 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 2,500

BEAR MT WINERY RD

Good

Over: ARVIN-EDISON CANAL

0.1 MI E COMANCHE DR, Kern, CA

Built 1966 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 120

STATE ROUTE 33

Good

Over: SESPE CREEK

07-VEN-033-30.52, Ventura, CA

Built 1932 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 340

BARNARD STREET

Good

Over: LAS LLAJAS CREEK

0.5 MI W STEARNS ST, Ventura, CA

Built 1946 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 3,000

CULVER BLVD

Good

Over: ROUTE 1

07-LA-001-30.47-LA, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1933 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 25,200

AVENUE 43

Good

Over: ST RTE 110 & ARROYO SECO

07-LA-110-27.12-LA, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1939 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 10,000

STATE ROUTE 27

Good

Over: BELL CREEK

07-LA-027-14.27-LA, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1949 Load: 23.0 t ADT: 42,000

Showing 13,701-13,750 of 25,848 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 California's inventory picture to drill to a county or a specific span.

  • Browse counties in California 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. California 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.