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

SD046

Good

Over: WEST FORK FROG CK

2.2 E JCT SD 19 N, Clay, SD

Built 2021 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 2,717

181st Street

Good

Over: Big Sioux River

2N & 1.2W of Castlewood, Hamlin, SD

Built 2016 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 66

IRR AR US083

Good

Over: CK

2.3 S JCT SD 44 E, Mellette, SD

Built 1965 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 1,558

SD046

Good

Over: JAMES RV

1.8 W JCT US 81, Yankton, SD

Built 2002 Load: 53.5 t ADT: 809

SD020

Good

Over: THUNDER BUTTE CK

7.7 W OF BISON, Perkins, SD

Built 1983 Load: 53.6 t ADT: 455

SD034

Good

Over: CK

19.2 E JCT US 14 & 83, Hughes, SD

Built 2015 Load: 53.7 t ADT: 658

SD037 N

Good

Over: SAND CK

3.3 S JCT SD 224, Sanborn, SD

Built 1976 Load: 53.7 t ADT: 1,479

US014

Good

Over: FROZENMAN CK

0.3 E OF HAYES, Stanley, SD

Built 2002 Load: 53.8 t ADT: 1,519

SD050

Good

Over: MARNE CK

1.3 W JCT US 81, Yankton, SD

Built 1980 Load: 53.8 t ADT: 3,975

SD025

Good

Over: CK

2.7 S HUTCHINSON CO LINE, Bon Homme, SD

Built 2012 Load: 54.1 t ADT: 888

IRR BIA RTE 121

Good

Over: BIG SPRING CREEK

18.2 KM SW OF SISSETON, Roberts, SD

Built 2018 Load: 54.1 t ADT: 75

483rd Avenue

Good

Over: Mud Creek

2E & 2.2N of Flandreau, Moody, SD

Built 2019 Load: 54.2 t ADT: 175

456th Avenue

Good

Over: W. Brach Little MN River

1W & 6.5N of Sisseton, Roberts, SD

Built 1994 Load: 54.2 t ADT: 20

US016A

Good

Over: LITTLE SQUAW CK

2.5 E JCT SD 87 N, Custer, SD

Built 1987 Load: 54.3 t ADT: 1,335

287 ST

Good

Over: CK

1S & 2.1E Menno, Hutchinson, SD

Built 1990 Load: 54.3 t ADT: 25

127th Street

Good

Over: James River

0.1W of Tacoma Park, Brown, SD

Built 2010 Load: 54.5 t ADT: 313

394TH AVE.

Good

Over: FIRESTEEL CK

15W & 5.9 N MITCHELL, Davison, SD

Built 2022 Load: 54.5 t ADT: 64

468th Avenue

Good

Over: Bull Ditch

0.9S & 2.0W of Colman, Moody, SD

Built 2005 Load: 54.6 t ADT: 35

US012

Good

Over: SPRING LK

2.8 W JCT SD 47 S, Walworth, SD

Built 1986 Load: 54.7 t ADT: 1,087

SD044

Good

Over: RAPID CK

6.4 SE JCT US 385, Pennington, SD

Built 1956 Load: 55.0 t ADT: 3,104

469TH AVENUE

Good

Over: CK

2W & 8.7N BROOKINGS, Brookings, SD

Built 1990 Load: 55.1 t ADT: 92

E. ARDMORE ROAD

Good

Over: LONG BRANCH CK

0.5E ARDMORE, Fall River, SD

Built 2019 Load: 55.2 t ADT: 41

272 ST

Good

Over: DOG EAR CK

9.7E & 1.0N WITTEN, Tripp, SD

Built 2005 Load: 55.2 t ADT: 15

327 AVENUE

Good

Over: CK

4E 7.3N COLOME, Tripp, SD

Built 2018 Load: 55.2 t ADT: 31

EDGEMONT RD

Good

Over: INDIAN CK

10.2W & 1.5S ARDMORE, Fall River, SD

Built 2003 Load: 55.3 t ADT: 20

SD071

Good

Over: DUCK CK

2.5 S JCT SD 471, Fall River, SD

Built 1992 Load: 55.3 t ADT: 208

IRR AR SD063

Good

Over: BRAVE BULL CK

0.6 S JCT I 90, Jackson, SD

Built 2006 Load: 55.4 t ADT: 95

US014A

Good

Over: DEADWOOD CK

2 N JCT US 85, Lawrence, SD

Built 2019 Load: 55.4 t ADT: 7,743

COUNTY RD

Good

Over: VERMILLION RV

1.9N CENTERVILLE, Turner, SD

Built 1995 Load: 55.4 t ADT: 160

S ROCHFORD

Good

Over: RAPID CK

0.6W 0.1S ROCHFORD, Pennington, SD

Built 2021 Load: 55.5 t ADT: 276

254TH ST HWY 122

Good

Over: WILLOW CK

1.4S & 1.1E LYONS, Minnehaha, SD

Built 1998 Load: 55.6 t ADT: 819

SD1806

Good

Over: DRAW

0.5 N JCT US14/SD34, Stanley, SD

Built 2010 Load: 55.7 t ADT: 1,804

SD044

Good

Over: CK

2.4 E HUTCHINSON CO LINE, Turner, SD

Built 1961 Load: 55.7 t ADT: 1,726

US083

Good

Over: CK

2 S OF MOUND CITY, Campbell, SD

Built 2011 Load: 55.8 t ADT: 929

213TH STREET

Good

Over: CK

1S & 2.9W BROOKINGS, Brookings, SD

Built 2000 Load: 56.0 t ADT: 92

202ND STREET

Good

Over: NORTH DEER CK

1N & 3.8E BRUCE, Brookings, SD

Built 1996 Load: 56.0 t ADT: 92

470TH AVENUE

Good

Over: NORTH DEER CK

10.3N & 1.0W BROOKINGS, Brookings, SD

Built 2005 Load: 56.0 t ADT: 40

197TH STREET

Good

Over: NORTH DEER CK

15N & 1E BROOKINGS, Brookings, SD

Built 2003 Load: 56.0 t ADT: 35

I090 W

Good

Over: SD248

RELIANCE INTERCHANGE, Lyman, SD

Built 2006 Load: 56.0 t ADT: 3,720

I090 E

Good

Over: SD248

RELIANCE INTERCHANGE, Lyman, SD

Built 2006 Load: 56.0 t ADT: 3,720

SD087

Good

Over: GRACE COOLIDGE CK

3.6 N JCT US 16A, Custer, SD

Built 2005 Load: 56.2 t ADT: 730

476 AVENUE

Good

Over: SOUTH FORK WHETSTONE RV

2W MILBANK, Grant, SD

Built 1999 Load: 56.2 t ADT: 25

202 NW 7TH STREET

Good

Over: PARK CK

7TH ST NW - MADISON, Lake, SD

Built 2003 Load: 56.2 t ADT: 290

SD019

Good

Over: CK

2.8 N JCT SD 44 WEST, Turner, SD

Built 1999 Load: 56.2 t ADT: 1,660

SD036

Good

Over: GRACE COOLIDGE CK

1.8 W JCT SD 79, Custer, SD

Built 1992 Load: 56.3 t ADT: 730

ALDER PL.

Good

Over: CK

1 W STURGIS, Meade, SD

Built 1963 Load: 56.3 t ADT: 33

47700 301 ST

Good

Over: CK

1W ALCESTER, Union, SD

Built 2004 Load: 56.3 t ADT: 120

GREEN VALLEY RD

Good

Over: CK

5.5S & 1.5W REE HEIGHTS, Hand, SD

Built 2008 Load: 56.6 t ADT: 43

SD115

Good

Over: BEAVER CK

1.1 N JCT SD 44, Lincoln, SD

Built 1987 Load: 56.7 t ADT: 1,900

US012

Good

Over: WHETSTONE RV

0.6 SW JCT SD 109, Grant, SD

Built 2003 Load: 57.1 t ADT: 3,317

Showing 4,551-4,600 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.