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

SCHOESSLER RD

Fair

Over: I-90

4.4 E JCT SR 261, Adams, WA

Built 1958 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 169

I-90

Fair

Over: PELICAN HORN

0.9 E JCT SR 171, Grant, WA

Built 1958 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 10,515

E-N RAMP

Fair

Over: I-5

5.5 N JCT SR 900, King, WA

Built 1966 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 22,370

HAXTON WY

Fair

Over: RED RIVER

00.70 S OF SLATER, Whatcom, WA

Built 1920 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 5,592

SOUTH SKAGIT HWY

Fair

Over: PRESSENTIN CREEK

18.5 E JCT SR9, Skagit, WA

Built 1966 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 635

SOUTH FERGUSON RD

Fair

Over: PARKE CREEK

00.34 N SORENSON RD, Kittitas, WA

Built 1996 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 86

KITZMILLER/5520

Fair

Over: MISSOURI FLAT CREEK

0.43 MI SE WHELAN, Whitman, WA

Built 1965 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 237

ROCK CREEK ROAD

Fair

Over: SQUAW CREEK

5.4 S JCT CR 34000, Klickitat, WA

Built 1982 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 16

W 1ST AVENUE

Fair

Over: C.I.D. CANAL

.08 S JCT KENN AV, Benton, WA

Built 1956 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 10,411

TALLEY WAY

Fair

Over: COWEEMAN RIVER

0.05 N ST RT 432, Cowlitz, WA

Built 1961 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 5,285

S 180TH ST

Fair

Over: GREEN RIVER

0.1 MI W JCT SR-181, King, WA

Built 1968 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 15,698

OLD CASCADE HWY

Fair

Over: MARTIN CEEK

0.2 MI S OF SR-2, King, WA

Built 1959 Load: 29.8 t ADT: 60

SR 508

Fair

Over: KEARNEY CREEK

16.0 E JCT I-5, Lewis, WA

Built 1937 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,672

SR 508

Fair

Over: ALDER CREEK

22.7 E JCT I-5, Lewis, WA

Built 1937 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,171

SR 509

Fair

Over: JOES CREEK

2.1 N PIERCE CO, King, WA

Built 1929 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 3,821

US 97

Fair

Over: OKANOGAN RIVER

3.6 N JCT SR 173, Okanogan, WA

Built 1950 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 4,687

SR 530

Fair

Over: SKAGIT RIVER

14.5 N SNOHOMISH CO, Skagit, WA

Built 1961 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,439

SR 10

Fair

Over: TERRAIN

2.0 E JCT SR 970, Kittitas, WA

Built 1937 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,317

SR 203

Fair

Over: SLOUGH

0.3 N JCT SR 202, King, WA

Built 1945 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 7,622

ALTONA-PILAR RK RD

Fair

Over: GRAYS RIVER

0.2 S JCT SR 4, Wahkiakum, WA

Built 1947 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 450

SR 7

Fair

Over: MASHEL RIVER

1.0 N JCT SR 161, Pierce, WA

Built 1948 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,737

SR 7

Fair

Over: NISQUALLY RIVER

16.3 N JCT SR 508, Lewis, WA

Built 1953 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 2,818

I-5

Fair

Over: LOG DUMP RD

1.6 N JCT SR 503, Cowlitz, WA

Built 1955 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 33,715

I-5

Fair

Over: S 336TH ST

0.8 N JCT SR 18, King, WA

Built 1959 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 89,140

I-182

Fair

Over: NP RY

1.6 E JCT US 395, Franklin, WA

Built 1964 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 26,482

RAMP TO I-5 NB/SB

Fair

Over: CITY STS RAMP & RR

3.8 N JCT SR 900, King, WA

Built 1966 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 23,338

I-5

Fair

Over: NISQUALLY RIVER

2.9 N JCT SR 510, Thurston, WA

Built 1967 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 61,580

I-90 W-N RAMP

Fair

Over: HOWARD ST

1.5 E JCT US 195, Spokane, WA

Built 1967 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 8,776

SR 16

Fair

Over: CEDAR ST

0.8 N JCT I-5, Pierce, WA

Built 1972 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 68,072

SR 500

Fair

Over: I-205

4.8 E JCT I-5, Clark, WA

Built 1973 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 70,662

PADDEN PARKWAY

Fair

Over: I-205

2.1 N JCT SR 500, Clark, WA

Built 1974 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 15,039

ANDERSON RD

Fair

Over: I-5

4.0 N JCT SR 534, Skagit, WA

Built 1974 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 6,325

SR 16

Fair

Over: N-W RAMP

JCT SR 302, Pierce, WA

Built 1977 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 26,130

I-82

Fair

Over: I-182

JCT I-182, Benton, WA

Built 1984 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 13,398

US 101

Fair

Over: QUEETS RIVER

0.6 N GRAYS HBR CO, Jefferson, WA

Built 1991 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,092

SR 520 E-N RAMP

Fair

Over: 115th AVE NE & TRAIL

JCT I-405, King, WA

Built 1993 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 12,263

VALLEY CHAPEL ROAD

Fair

Over: LATAH CREEK

0.5 S ELDER ROAD, Spokane, WA

Built 1957 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 411

LEY RD

Fair

Over: WALLACE RIVER

1.3 NE JCT SR 2, Snohomish, WA

Built 1970 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,061

NORTH MACHIAS RD

Fair

Over: LITTLE PILCHUCK CREEK

1.5 S JCT SR 92, Snohomish, WA

Built 1977 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 5,774

MINERAL CREEK ROAD

Fair

Over: ROUNDTOP CREEK

0.5 E MINERAL, Lewis, WA

Built 1967 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 364

SUTTON ROAD

Fair

Over: BRANCH CANAL EL68 275+19

00.51 MI W SR17, Adams, WA

Built 1952 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 71

STEAMBOAT SL ROAD

Fair

Over: BROOKS SLOUGH

0.1 S JCT SR 4, Wahkiakum, WA

Built 1959 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 187

9 ROAD NW

Fair

Over: IRRIGATION LATERAL

9 NW 0.2 East of E NW, Grant, WA

Built 1950 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 463

Mary M Knight Rd

Fair

Over: DRY CREEK

0.15 W of MatlockBradyRD, Mason, WA

Built 1970 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 148

FLYNN RD

Fair

Over: FISHTRAP CR

00.4 SW B.B. LYNDEN, Whatcom, WA

Built 1988 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 125

LECH ROAD

Fair

Over: JONES CREEK

1.0 NE PE ELL, Lewis, WA

Built 1953 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 14

BIG HANAFORD RD.

Fair

Over: SOUTH HANAFORD CR.

5. E CENTRALIA, Lewis, WA

Built 1974 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 561

ELMA MCCLEARY ROAD

Fair

Over: WILDCAT CREEK

2.0 NE JCT SR 8, Grays Harbor, WA

Built 1921 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 1,863

WYNOOCHE WISHKAH

Fair

Over: EAST FORK WISHKAH RIVER

04.1 W JCT 9519, Grays Harbor, WA

Built 1979 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 682

SW SPOKANE ST

Fair

Over: DELRIDGE WAY SW

1200 SW Spokane St, King, WA

Built 1983 Load: 29.9 t ADT: 93,180

Showing 2,201-2,250 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.