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

CORBY AVE

Fair

Over: COLGAN CREEK

0.1 MILE SOUTH OF HEARN, Sonoma, CA

Built 1930 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 3,000

ADOBE RD

Fair

Over: LYNCH CREEK

3.2 MI S PETALUMA HILL RD, Sonoma, CA

Built 1950 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 11,600

ELVAS AVE

Fair

Over: J STREET

ELVAS AVE AT J ST, Sacramento, CA

Built 1953 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 21,078

TYLER ROAD

Fair

Over: SOUTH FORK COSUMNES RIV

3.0 MI NE OF LAWRENCE RD, Amador, CA

Built 1945 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 56

PERADA DR

Fair

Over: PINE CREEK

0.1 MI E CITRUS AVE, Contra Costa, CA

Built 1958 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 900

MACARTHUR DRIVE

Fair

Over: DELTA-MENDOTA CANAL

2.6 MI S LINNE ROAD, San Joaquin, CA

Built 1950 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 2,165

STATE PARK RD

Fair

Over: PETERS CREEK

PORTOLA ST. PARK, San Mateo, CA

Built 1948 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 30

U.S. HIGHWAY 101

Fair

Over: STEVENS CREEK

04-SCL-101-48.04-MVW, Santa Clara, CA

Built 1932 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 155,000

WHITEHURST ROAD

Fair

Over: BODFISH CREEK

1.86 M S/O HECKER PASS RD, Santa Clara, CA

Built 1939 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 70

CHICAGO AVENUE

Fair

Over: M.I.D. LATERAL #5

0.4 MI E CARPENTER RD, Stanislaus, CA

Built 1927 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 1,898

PAULINE AVENUE

Fair

Over: M.I.D. LATERAL #4

S/O STATE RTE 132, Stanislaus, CA

Built 1922 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 646

STATE ROUTE 59

Fair

Over: MARIPOSA CREEK

10-MER-059-10.38, Merced, CA

Built 1925 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 7,700

COTTON ROAD

Fair

Over: CCID MAIN CANAL

SPRUCE ROAD, Merced, CA

Built 1966 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 160

WARDROBE AVENUE

Fair

Over: SOUTH SLOUGH

0.6 MI EAST OF GURR ROAD, Merced, CA

Built 1930 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 400

HILLDALE AVENUE

Fair

Over: DELTA-MENDOTA CANAL

1.6 MI N OF SR 152, Merced, CA

Built 1952 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 9

E SOUTH AVE

Fair

Over: FOWLER SWITCH CANAL

JUST EAST OF HIGHLAND AVE, Fresno, CA

Built 1948 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 500

N LEONARD AVE

Fair

Over: ENTERPRISE CANAL

0.16 MI SOUTH OF BULLARD, Fresno, CA

Built 1925 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 600

DOOLING ROAD

Fair

Over: ARROYO DOS PICACHOS

EAST ROSA MORADA RD, San Benito, CA

Built 1940 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 500

JOHNSON RD

Fair

Over: CARNEROS CREEK

0.1 MI S HALL RD, Monterey, CA

Built 1950 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 2,200

LACEY BLVD

Fair

Over: KINGS RIVER CLARKS FORK

0.3 MI W OF 23RD AVE, Kings, CA

Built 1974 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 400

SR 190 (AVE 144)

Fair

Over: FRIANT-KERN CANAL

06-TUL-190-11.97, Tulare, CA

Built 1949 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 6,975

STATE ROUTE 166

Fair

Over: CARRIZO CREEK

05-SLO-166-44.26, San Luis Obispo, CA

Built 1941 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 2,900

SABODAN ST

Fair

Over: INTERSTATE 5

06-KER-005-17.58, Kern, CA

Built 1967 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 35

ORANGE GROVE BLVD

Fair

Over: STATE ROUTE 134 & RAMPS

07-LA-134-R12.96-PAS, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1971 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 13,800

MAIN ST

Fair

Over: TORRANCE LATERAL BR

0.1MI N/O CARSON ST, Los Angeles, CA

Built 1962 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 18,344

LA MIRADA BLVD.

Fair

Over: COYOTE CREEK CHANNEL

0.2 MI. NW/O BEACH BLVD., Orange, CA

Built 1950 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 24,000

ROUTE 74

Fair

Over: SAN JACINTO RIVER

08-RIV-074-49.16, Riverside, CA

Built 1929 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 3,774

INTERSTATE 10

Fair

Over: CALIFORNIA AVE

08-RIV-010-7.32-BAU, Riverside, CA

Built 1961 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 123,000

ROUTE 125 SB

Fair

Over: SUMMIT MEADOW RD

11-SD-125-7.39, San Diego, CA

Built 2008 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 34,000

LA COSTA AVE

Fair

Over: NCTD BNSF RY & AMTRAK

150FT E/O COAST HWY 101, San Diego, CA

Built 1968 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 11,781

BUCKEYE-ROBINSON

Fair

Over: ROBINSON CREEK

NO DATA ENTERED, Mono, CA

Built 1983 Load: 19.1 t ADT: 90

BRIDGE STREET

Fair

Over: SACRAMENTO RIVER

WEST OF FIRST ST, Siskiyou, CA

Built 1965 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 1,104

MATTOLE RD

Fair

Over: DRY CREEK

1 MI S/O SINGLEY CREEK, Humboldt, CA

Built 1985 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 196

PRICE CK CMPBEL RD

Fair

Over: PRICE CREEK

PATTERSON RANCH ROAD, Trinity, CA

Built 1965 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 118

FREEMAN SCH HSE RD

Fair

Over: JEWETT CREEK

0.1 MI N CORNING RD, Tehama, CA

Built 1939 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 200

LOWREY ROAD

Fair

Over: VALLE GULCH

0.2 MI W RED BANK RD, Tehama, CA

Built 1952 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 90

HOUGHTON AVE

Fair

Over: JEWETT CREEK

0.3 MI N LOLETA AVE, Tehama, CA

Built 1937 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 600

BUTTE MOUNTAIN RD

Fair

Over: PARKER CREEK

1.7 MI N/O LONG HOLLOW RD, Tehama, CA

Built 1963 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 20

STATE ROUTE 1

Fair

Over: GARCIA RIVER

01-MEN-001-18.50, Mendocino, CA

Built 1938 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 2,100

DOS RIOS RD

Fair

Over: EEL RIVER & NCRRA (NWP)

0.5 MI NW OF SR 162, Mendocino, CA

Built 1966 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 143

USAL ROAD

Fair

Over: USAL CREEK

5.9 MI N JCT SR 1, Mendocino, CA

Built 1955 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 24

NELSON SHIPPEE RD

Fair

Over: LITTLE DRY CREEK

1.8 MI W COLONY RD, Butte, CA

Built 1930 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 33

AFTON RD

Fair

Over: LITTLE DRY CREEK

0.2 MI E AGUAS FRIAS RD, Butte, CA

Built 1937 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 105

NELSON RD

Fair

Over: EDGAR SLOUGH OVERFLOW

0.2 MI E OF 7 MI LANE, Butte, CA

Built 1927 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 50

WAGNER AVE

Fair

Over: SALT CREEK

0.1 MI E OF REDDINGTON RD, Colusa, CA

Built 1960 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 399

CASCADE RD

Fair

Over: MCKINNEY CREEK

0.2 MI NW MCKNY RUBCN SP, Placer, CA

Built 1950 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 1,409

FREEZEOUT ROAD

Fair

Over: FREEZEOUT CREEK

0.3 MI S MOSCOW RD, Sonoma, CA

Built 1971 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 200

WEST DRY CREEK RD

Fair

Over: PENA CREEK

0.7 MI NW YOAKIM BR RD, Sonoma, CA

Built 1924 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 300

TENNESSEE STREET

Fair

Over: INTERSTATE 80 & RAMPS

04-SOL-080-3.49-VAL, Solano, CA

Built 1958 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 9,792

TYLER ISLAND BR RD

Fair

Over: GEORGIANA SLOUGH

1.5 MI E ISLETON ROAD, Sacramento, CA

Built 1940 Load: 19.4 t ADT: 252

Showing 1,601-1,650 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.