State profile · Below median Poor share

Washington 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 Washington.

8,474
Public bridges
50.1%
Good condition
5.5%
Poor condition

Washington has 8,474 public highway bridges in the FHWA's 2024 National Bridge Inventory, and 462 of them are rated Poor.

That is 5.5% 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 24 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

8,474

Public highway bridges in Washington

Good Condition

50.1%

4,246 bridges rated 7-9

0.1pp vs 50% benchmark

Poor Condition

5.5%

462 bridges whose lowest applicable component is rated 0-4

-2.1pp vs national avg 7.5%

Washington vs national bridge condition

Washington - Good condition share 50.1%
National avg

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

Washington - Poor-condition share 18.2%
National avg

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

Washington 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: Washington has 8,474 bridges and a 5.5% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #24 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 (%) WA, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 8.5k · Poor-condition share (%): 5.45%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%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%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: Washington has 8,474 bridges and a 5.5% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #24 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.

Washington 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

8,474 29th of 54 higher than 25 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 Washington

The highlighted point is Washington: 8,474 bridges and 5.45% in Poor condition, rank #24 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The five jurisdictions immediately above and below Washington on that same Poor-share ordering:

  • 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
  • New Jersey: 6,827 bridges · 6.01% Poor

The full national sortable table lives on the rankings page.

Material families in Washington

Exclusive FHWA material families across all 8,474 bridges in this state; continuous variants fold into the parent family. Orthogonal to the Poor-share scatter above.

Who maintains Washington’s inventory

State agency holds 39.9% of the 8,474 public highway bridges filed under Washington in the 2024 NBI, the agency-of-record split for this state, not a condition verdict.

When Washington’s bridges were built

Pre-1950 construction accounts for 12.8% of the 8,474 bridges with a recorded original year in Washington. Era bands are orthogonal to the Poor-share ranking above.

Condition Distribution

Washington50.1%44.4%GoodFairPoor
Bridge inventory deck-condition mix - Washington (FHWA NBI)

Counties (39)

Adams 187 Asotin 29 Benton 167 Chelan 149 Clallam 151 Clark 218 Columbia 86 Cowlitz 160 Douglas 40 Ferry 53 Franklin 134 Garfield 54 Grant 306 Grays Harbor 363 Island 7 Jefferson 99 King 1238 Kitsap 115 Kittitas 308 Klickitat 90 Lewis 419 Lincoln 180 Mason 133 Okanogan 161 Pacific 120 Pend Oreille 71 Pierce 472 San Juan 13 Skagit 254 Skamania 120 Snohomish 500 Spokane 307 Stevens 75 Thurston 205 Wahkiakum 36 Walla Walla 195 Whatcom 354 Whitman 347 Yakima 558

Washington 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 Washington on the same metric.

KS

Kansas

5.26% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$24,894

AR

Arkansas

5.43% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$12,974
Selected

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

NJ

New Jersey

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

Bridges Needing Most Attention in Washington

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

STATE ROUTE 509

Poor

Over: PUYALLUP WATERWAY RR

2.5 N JCT I-5, Pierce, WA

Built 1911 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 2,400

I-82

Poor

Over: WASTEWATER NUMBER 3

8.4 E JCT US 97, Yakima, WA

Built 1980 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 28,146

Fish War Mem X-ing

Poor

Over: PUYALLUP RIVER

0.2 N JCT I-5, Pierce, WA

Built 1925 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 15,255

POST STREET

Poor

Over: SPOKANE RIVER

00.6 N OF I-90, Spokane, WA

Built 1917 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 1,685

W Galer Street

Poor

Over: Private Road

Magnolia Seattle, King, WA

Built 1929 Load: 0.0 t

SILVER CK RD 00670

Poor

Over: NINE MILE CREEK

19.05 E SR 21, Ferry, WA

Built 1958 Load: 2.7 t ADT: 47

All Bridges in Washington

LAMBERT ROAD

Fair

Over: TEANAWAY RIVER

00.75 E US 970, Kittitas, WA

Built 1971 Load: 22.4 t ADT: 272

PRIVATE ROAD

Fair

Over: GRANITE CREEK

5.1 MI N OF I-90, King, WA

Built 1967 Load: 22.4 t ADT: 25

SE MIDDLE FORK RD

Fair

Over: MIDDLE FORK SNOQUALMIE R

5.1 MI N OF I-90, King, WA

Built 1963 Load: 22.4 t ADT: 125

ROEDER AVE

Fair

Over: BNSF RR

.25 W FED BLDG, Whatcom, WA

Built 1988 Load: 22.4 t ADT: 7,500

SR 203

Fair

Over: CREEK

3.0 N JCT SR 202, King, WA

Built 1945 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 7,622

I-5

Fair

Over: STILLAGUAMISH RIVER

0.7 N JCT SR 530, Snohomish, WA

Built 1933 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 43,620

SR 31

Fair

Over: SLATE CREEK

21.1 N JCT SR 20, Pend Oreille, WA

Built 1933 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 103

SR 25

Fair

Over: SHEEP CREEK

34.3 N JCT US 395, Stevens, WA

Built 1937 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 475

US 101

Fair

Over: CALAWAH RIVER

7.8 N JEFFERSON CO, Clallam, WA

Built 1938 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 5,905

SR 141

Fair

Over: WHITE SALMON R

4.0 N JCT SR 141 SPUR, Klickitat, WA

Built 1940 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 3,189

FORT ROAD

Fair

Over: DRAIN

0.19 W.W.STEPHENSON, Yakima, WA

Built 1946 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 2,250

US 2

Fair

Over: WOODS CREEK

0.4 E JCT SR 203, Snohomish, WA

Built 1950 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 21,133

SR 525

Fair

Over: POSSESSION SOUND

1.9 N JCT SR 526, Island, WA

Built 1987 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 12,000

I-90 WB RAMP

Fair

Over: I-90

5.0 E JCT SR 27, Spokane, WA

Built 1956 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,858

SR 303

Fair

Over: PORT WASHINGTON NARROWS

0.9 N JCT SR 304, Kitsap, WA

Built 1958 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 41,918

SR 3

Fair

Over: CRANBERRY CREEK

8.6 N JCT US 101, Mason, WA

Built 1957 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 15,429

I-5 N-W RAMP

Fair

Over: SR 432 E-S RAMP

15.8 N JCT SR 503, Cowlitz, WA

Built 1959 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 12,908

SPRING ST

Fair

Over: I-5

1.1 N JCT I-90, King, WA

Built 1964 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 10,000

US 2

Fair

Over: EBEY SLOUGH AND SR 204

2.1 E JCT I-5, Snohomish, WA

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 38,740

I-5

Fair

Over: ELM ST

8.8 N JCT SR 503, Cowlitz, WA

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 33,882

US 12

Fair

Over: PACIFIC P L TAILRACE

7.5 E JCT SR 410, Yakima, WA

Built 1969 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 5,637

US 101

Fair

Over: WAKETICKEH CREEK

3.9 S JEFFERSON CO, Mason, WA

Built 1982 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 2,336

SR 160

Fair

Over: PUGET SOUND

N END VASHON ISLAND, King, WA

Built 1993 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 2,635

NO DATA ENTERED

Fair

Over: CISPUS RIVER

20 MILES SOUTH-EAST OF JC, Skamania, WA

Built 1951 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 300

ROAD

Fair

Over: GEE CREEK

NO DATA ENTERED, Skagit, WA

Built 1956 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 25

ROAD

Fair

Over: CASCADE RIVER

NO DATA ENTERED, Skagit, WA

Built 1965 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 10

ROAD

Fair

Over: S FK SNOQUALMIE RIVER

0.1 MI W OF 58/5830 JCT, King, WA

Built 1964 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 50

FOGGY DEW RD

Fair

Over: NORTH FK GOLD CREEK

NO DATA ENTERED, Okanogan, WA

Built 1949 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 37

NO DATA ENTERED

Fair

Over: HAMMA HAMMA RIVER

NO DATA ENTERED, Mason, WA

Built 1950 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 30

NO DATA ENTERED

Fair

Over: W FK HUMPTULIPS RIVER

NO DATA ENTERED, Grays Harbor, WA

Built 1951 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 50

NO DATA ENTERED

Fair

Over: BEAR CREEK

NO DATA ENTERED, Clallam, WA

Built 1963 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 50

CORRAL CREEK

Fair

Over: MIDDLE FORK TEANAWAY

NO DATA ENTERED, Kittitas, WA

Built 1955 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 50

CERES HILL ROAD

Fair

Over: BUNKER CREEK

3.0 NW ADNA, Lewis, WA

Built 1963 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 159

WOODS CR RD

Fair

Over: WOODS CREEK

8.1 NE JCT SR 2, Snohomish, WA

Built 1966 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,578

HOME ACRES ROAD

Fair

Over: EBEY SLOUGH

2.6 S JCT SR 2, Snohomish, WA

Built 1976 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,116

GASLINE/4310

Fair

Over: PLEASANT VALLEY CREEK

.18 MI. WEST SR 23, Whitman, WA

Built 1921 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 60

BEACH DRIVE NE

Fair

Over: MCALEER CREEK

0.12 MI SE OF SR-522, King, WA

Built 1949 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 600

SHORE DRIVE NE

Fair

Over: MCALEER CREEK

0.22 MI SE OF SR-522, King, WA

Built 1949 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 600

E RD SE

Fair

Over: IRRIGATION LATERAL

0.8S 13SE, Grant, WA

Built 1954 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 113

South Loon Lake Rd

Fair

Over: RAILROAD

00.28 W JCT SR 395, Stevens, WA

Built 1952 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 322

STARR ROAD

Fair

Over: NEWMAN LAKE OUTLET

STARR RD. 02.0 N. MOAB, Spokane, WA

Built 1968 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,781

SULLIVAN ROAD (NB)

Fair

Over: UNION PACIFIC RR

1.1 S TRENT ROAD, Spokane, WA

Built 1973 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 28,100

WILLOW GULCH RD

Fair

Over: DEADMAN CREEK

1.6 E JCT SR 127, Garfield, WA

Built 1960 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 40

TELEGRAPH RD N

Fair

Over: SUMAS RIVER

00.2 N.E.DEETER RD., Whatcom, WA

Built 1953 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,120

MOUNTAIN LOOP HWY.

Fair

Over: COAL CREEK

24.0 E JCT SR 92, Snohomish, WA

Built 1949 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,324

JENKINS CREEK ROAD

Fair

Over: WEST PRONG LITTLE KLICK.

0.2 W SR 97, Klickitat, WA

Built 1974 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 61

ORVILLE RD E

Fair

Over: KAPOWSIN CREEK

10.7 NE JCT SR 161, Pierce, WA

Built 1920 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 2,875

WALTER SCHOLZ/6150

Fair

Over: UNION FLAT CREEK

0.21 MI S UNION FLAT CRK, Whitman, WA

Built 1974 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 50

HANNEGAN RD

Fair

Over: NOOKSACK RIVER

00.1 N POLINDER RD., Whatcom, WA

Built 1934 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 9,332

HIGH BRIDGE RD

Fair

Over: TRIB. SNOQUALMIE RIVER

2.9 N KING CO LINE, Snohomish, WA

Built 1983 Load: 22.7 t ADT: 1,754

Showing 1,201-1,250 of 8,474 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 Washington's inventory picture to drill to a county or a specific span.

  • Browse counties in Washington 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. Washington 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.