State profile · Above median Poor share

South Dakota 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 South Dakota.

5,887
Public bridges
33.8%
Good condition
16.4%
Poor condition

South Dakota holds 5,887 public highway bridges (#33 of 52 by inventory) with a 16.36% Poor share (#3 of 52 by Poor share).

That is 16.4% 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 51 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

5,887

Public highway bridges in South Dakota

Good Condition

33.8%

1,992 bridges rated 7-9

-16.2pp vs 50% benchmark

Poor Condition

16.4%

963 bridges whose lowest applicable component is rated 0-4

8.8pp vs national avg 7.5%

South Dakota vs national bridge condition

South Dakota - Good condition share 33.8%
National avg

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

South Dakota - Poor-condition share 54.5%
National avg

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

South Dakota 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: South Dakota has 5,887 bridges and a 16.4% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #51 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 (%) SD, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 5.9k · Poor-condition share (%): 16.36%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%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: South Dakota has 5,887 bridges and a 16.4% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #51 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.

South Dakota 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

5,887 33rd of 54 higher than 21 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 South Dakota

The highlighted point is South Dakota: 5,887 bridges and 16.36% in Poor condition, rank #51 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The five jurisdictions immediately above and below South Dakota on that same Poor-share ordering:

  • Rhode Island: 783 bridges · 15.20% Poor
  • Maine: 2,518 bridges · 15.41% Poor
  • South Dakota: 5,887 bridges · 16.36% Poor
  • West Virginia: 7,348 bridges · 18.64% Poor
  • Iowa: 23,719 bridges · 19.16% Poor

The full national sortable table lives on the rankings page.

Material families in South Dakota

Exclusive FHWA material families across all 5,887 bridges in this state; continuous variants fold into the parent family. Orthogonal to the Poor-share scatter above.

Who maintains South Dakota’s inventory

State agency holds 31.3% of the 5,887 public highway bridges filed under South Dakota in the 2024 NBI, the agency-of-record split for this state, not a condition verdict.

When South Dakota’s bridges were built

Pre-1950 construction accounts for 18.2% of the 5,887 bridges with a recorded original year in South Dakota. Era bands are orthogonal to the Poor-share ranking above.

Condition Distribution

South Dakota33.8%49.8%16.4%GoodFairPoor
Bridge inventory deck-condition mix - South Dakota (FHWA NBI)

Counties (66)

Aurora 61 Beadle 152 Bennett 15 Bon Homme 126 Brookings 233 Brown 170 Brule 38 Buffalo 25 Butte 143 Campbell 15 Charles Mix 103 Clark 20 Clay 94 Codington 74 Corson 49 Custer 95 Davison 123 Day 34 Deuel 72 Dewey 28 Douglas 44 Edmunds 20 Fall River 80 Faulk 46 Grant 205 Gregory 51 Haakon 69 Hamlin 62 Hand 126 Hanson 62 Harding 49 Hughes 40 Hutchinson 161 Hyde 23 Jackson 89 Jerauld 35 Jones 37 Kingsbury 35 Lake 79 Lawrence 136 Lincoln 207 Lyman 114 Marshall 39 McCook 98 McPherson 14 Meade 215 Mellette 28 Miner 64 Minnehaha 393 Moody 87 Oglala Lakota 34 Pennington 348 Perkins 60 Potter 24 Roberts 157 Sanborn 53 Spink 176 Stanley 37 Sully 31 Todd 24 Tripp 90 Turner 143 Union 170 Walworth 33 Yankton 99 Ziebach 30

South Dakota 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 South Dakota on the same metric.

RI

Rhode Island

15.20% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$783

ME

Maine

15.41% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$2,518
Selected

SD

South Dakota

16.36% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$5,887

WV

West Virginia

18.64% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$7,348

IA

Iowa

19.16% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$23,719

Bridges Needing Most Attention in South Dakota

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

SMITHWICK ROAD

Poor

Over: WHITE RIVER

.75 KM NE OF BIA RTE 41, Oglala Lakota, SD

Built 1935 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 10

395th Avenue

Poor

Over: Cain Creek

8.6S & 5W of Huron, Beadle, SD

Built 1926 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 56

216 ST

Poor

Over: SOUTH FORK PEARL CK

8.0S 1.5W CAVOUR, Beadle, SD

Built 1924 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 56

200TH ST

Poor

Over: SHUE CK

8N 0.8E CAVOUR, Beadle, SD

Built 1912 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 56

412th Avenue

Poor

Over: Middle Pearl Creek

5.1S & 3E of Cavour, Beadle, SD

Built 1930 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 56

41480 299th Street

Poor

Over: Emanuel Creek

4N & 1.2W of Tyndall, Bon Homme, SD

Built 1905 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 20

All Bridges in South Dakota

SD034

Good

Over: FOUR MILE CK

19.5 NE JCT SD 79 N, Meade, SD

Built 2015 Load: 44.8 t ADT: 847

SD075

Good

Over: THUNDER BUTTE CK

0.2 N JCT SD 20, Perkins, SD

Built 1994 Load: 44.8 t ADT: 205

IRR SD034

Good

Over: CK

2.1 E JCT SD 50, Buffalo, SD

Built 1999 Load: 44.9 t ADT: 468

INDIAN CANYON

Good

Over: PLUM CK

8.7E JCT SD 471, Fall River, SD

Built 1982 Load: 44.9 t ADT: 77

203RD STREET

Good

Over: BIG SIOUX RV

0.25N & 0.4W BRUCE, Brookings, SD

Built 1994 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 92

199TH STREET

Good

Over: SIX MILE CK

4.5N & 0.5E WHITE, Brookings, SD

Built 1989 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 92

SD071

Good

Over: CK

2.2 N JCT SD 471, Fall River, SD

Built 2000 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 239

US018

Good

Over: TRIB TURKEY RIDGE CK

4.1 E TURKEY RIDGE, Turner, SD

Built 2019 Load: 45.0 t ADT: 875

I090 E

Good

Over: N RAINBOW RD

1.5 W US 85 S INTERCH, Lawrence, SD

Built 1971 Load: 45.1 t ADT: 8,525

29620 414th Avenue

Good

Over: Emanuel Creek

6.7N & 2W of Tyndall, Bon Homme, SD

Built 2013 Load: 45.2 t ADT: 60

200TH STREET

Good

Over: BIG SIOUX RV

3N & 1.1E BRUCE, Brookings, SD

Built 2010 Load: 45.2 t ADT: 92

JENNINGS AVENUE

Good

Over: FALL RV

JENNINGS&RIVER HOTSPRNGS, Fall River, SD

Built 2021 Load: 45.2 t ADT: 100

286th Street

Good

Over: Snake Creek

7S & 2.6E of Lennox, Lincoln, SD

Built 2019 Load: 45.2 t ADT: 48

SD042

Good

Over: WEST FORK VERMILLION RV

1.7 E JCT US 81, McCook, SD

Built 1983 Load: 45.3 t ADT: 1,590

US083

Good

Over: WHITE RV

JONES-MELLETTE CO LINE, Mellette, SD

Built 2021 Load: 45.3 t ADT: 1,375

SD053

Good

Over: BUTTE CK

1.8 N JCT SD 44, Mellette, SD

Built 2004 Load: 45.3 t ADT: 106

SD052

Good

Over: UNNAMED CK

7.8 E JCT SD 37, Bon Homme, SD

Built 2021 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 876

OLD HIGHWAY 18

Good

Over: MICKELSON TRAIL

4E & 1.8N EDGEMONT, Fall River, SD

Built 2023 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 50

SD071

Good

Over: CASCADE CK

8 S OF HOT SPRINGS, Fall River, SD

Built 1998 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 383

476 AVENUE

Good

Over: CK

3.3N & 2W MILBANK, Grant, SD

Built 2010 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 20

241 ST

Good

Over: BUFFALO CK

3.1W & 0.2S CHESTER, Lake, SD

Built 2019 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 903

256TH ST HWY 126

Good

Over: WILLOW CK

1N & 1.7W CROOKS, Minnehaha, SD

Built 2015 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 410

BASE LINE ROAD

Good

Over: BOXELDER CK

1.0 W 3.8 S WASTA, Pennington, SD

Built 2002 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 23

470th Avenue

Good

Over: Creek

2W & 0.1N of Corona, Roberts, SD

Built 1984 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 68

SD020

Good

Over: JAMES RV

5.2 E JCT US 281, Spink, SD

Built 2003 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 953

SD011 SF

Good

Over: WEST UNION CK

4.0 N JCT SD 48, Union, SD

Built 1969 Load: 45.4 t ADT: 50

480TH AVENUE

Good

Over: MEDARY CK

3.4N & 6W ELKTON, Brookings, SD

Built 1989 Load: 45.5 t ADT: 92

MILWAUKEE AVE SE

Good

Over: Moccasin Creek

RAILROAD ST - ABERDEEN, Brown, SD

Built 1986 Load: 45.5 t ADT: 50

223rd Street

Good

Over: Big Sioux River

11W of Ward, Moody, SD

Built 2018 Load: 45.6 t ADT: 250

SD050

Good

Over: BIG SIOUX RIVER

At South Dakota Border, Union, SD

Built 2010 Load: 45.6 t ADT: 1,590

266th Avenue

Good

Over: Bad River

1.4S Stanley Co Line, Jones, SD

Built 1996 Load: 45.7 t ADT: 45

263rd Street

Good

Over: E. Fork of Vermillion Rv

8.5S & 1.1E of Montrose, McCook, SD

Built 2019 Load: 45.7 t ADT: 66

468TH AVENUE

Good

Over: CK

0.9N & 3W BROOKINGS, Brookings, SD

Built 1978 Load: 45.8 t ADT: 92

417th Avenue

Good

Over: Creek

4.2 S & 3.0 E of Raymond, Clark, SD

Built 2022 Load: 45.8 t ADT: 39

I090 E

Good

Over: I90 EF

2.8 E SD 47 INTERCH, Lyman, SD

Built 1972 Load: 45.8 t ADT: 3,650

I090 W

Good

Over: 453 AVE

1 W MINNEHAHA CO LINE, McCook, SD

Built 1964 Load: 45.8 t ADT: 6,685

SD037 S

Good

Over: SAND CK

3.3 S JCT SD 224, Sanborn, SD

Built 1977 Load: 45.8 t ADT: 1,479

Twin Butte Road

Good

Over: Trib. to Blk Horse Butte

1.0W & 28.5S KELDRON, Corson, SD

Built 2005 Load: 45.9 t ADT: 14

SD251

Good

Over: PONCA CK

2.6 S JST US 18, Gregory, SD

Built 1984 Load: 45.9 t ADT: 405

IRR SD010

Good

Over: CLEAR LAKE INLET

3 SE JCT SD 25 N, Marshall, SD

Built 1993 Load: 45.9 t ADT: 714

E 6TH ST

Good

Over: I229

6TH ST OVERHEAD, Minnehaha, SD

Built 1992 Load: 45.9 t ADT: 13,170

SD079

Good

Over: DRY CK

6.6 N FALL RIVER CO LINE, Custer, SD

Built 2004 Load: 46.0 t ADT: 3,672

I090 E

Good

Over: 195 AVE

4.4 SE US 14 INTERCHANGE, Pennington, SD

Built 1974 Load: 46.0 t ADT: 3,570

SD046

Good

Over: I029

SD 46 INTERCHANGE, Union, SD

Built 2000 Load: 46.0 t ADT: 5,259

FDR 345

Good

Over: IRON CREEK

T 2 S R 6 E SEC 31, Custer, SD

Built 1954 Load: 46.0 t ADT: 25

107th Street

Good

Over: Elm River

0.3 N 9.4 W of FREDERICK, Brown, SD

Built 2015 Load: 46.1 t ADT: 77

476th Avenue

Good

Over: Beaver Creek

0.3N & 4E of Worthing, Lincoln, SD

Built 1998 Load: 46.1 t ADT: 65

324 AVENUE

Good

Over: CHAPELLE CK

3.0E & 9.2S HARROLD, Hughes, SD

Built 2022 Load: 46.2 t ADT: 33

254TH ST HWY 122

Good

Over: WEST BR SKUNK CK

5N & 1.8W HARTFORD, Minnehaha, SD

Built 2020 Load: 46.2 t ADT: 490

SD042

Good

Over: CK

1.9 E JCT SD 17 S, Minnehaha, SD

Built 1989 Load: 46.2 t ADT: 6,982

Showing 4,351-4,400 of 5,887 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 South Dakota's inventory picture to drill to a county or a specific span.

  • Browse counties in South Dakota 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. South Dakota 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.