State profile · Near median Poor share

Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin.

14,446
Public bridges
51.0%
Good condition
6.5%
Poor condition

Wisconsin holds 14,446 public highway bridges (#19 of 52 by inventory) with a 6.52% Poor share (#23 of 52 by Poor share).

That is 6.5% 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 30 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

14,446

Public highway bridges in Wisconsin

Good Condition

51.0%

7,368 bridges rated 7-9

1.0pp vs 50% benchmark

Poor Condition

6.5%

942 bridges whose lowest applicable component is rated 0-4

-1.0pp vs national avg 7.5%

Wisconsin vs national bridge condition

Wisconsin - Good condition share 51.0%
National avg

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

Wisconsin - Poor-condition share 21.7%
National avg

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

Wisconsin 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: Wisconsin has 14,446 bridges and a 6.5% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #30 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 (%) WI, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 14.4k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.52%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%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%WY, Public bridges in inventory (thousands): 3.1k · Poor-condition share (%): 6.51%
Inventory size and Poor-condition share are different measures: Wisconsin has 14,446 bridges and a 6.5% Poor-condition share in the 2024 NBI, rank #30 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.

Wisconsin 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

14,446 19th of 54 higher than 35 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 Wisconsin

The highlighted point is Wisconsin: 14,446 bridges and 6.52% in Poor condition, rank #30 of 54 jurisdictions ordered from the lowest share upward. The five jurisdictions immediately above and below Wisconsin on that same Poor-share ordering:

  • South Carolina: 9,490 bridges · 6.17% Poor
  • Wyoming: 3,136 bridges · 6.51% Poor
  • Wisconsin: 14,446 bridges · 6.52% Poor
  • Hawaii: 1,195 bridges · 6.53% Poor
  • North Carolina: 19,210 bridges · 6.76% Poor

The full national sortable table lives on the rankings page.

Material families in Wisconsin

Exclusive FHWA material families across all 14,446 bridges in this state; continuous variants fold into the parent family. Orthogonal to the Poor-share scatter above.

Who maintains Wisconsin’s inventory

State agency holds 37.0% of the 14,446 public highway bridges filed under Wisconsin in the 2024 NBI, the agency-of-record split for this state, not a condition verdict.

When Wisconsin’s bridges were built

Pre-1950 construction accounts for 8.5% of the 14,446 bridges with a recorded original year in Wisconsin. Era bands are orthogonal to the Poor-share ranking above.

Condition Distribution

Wisconsin51%42.5%GoodFairPoor
Bridge inventory deck-condition mix - Wisconsin (FHWA NBI)

Counties (72)

Adams 41 Ashland 84 Barron 319 Bayfield 103 Brown 466 Buffalo 238 Burnett 67 Calumet 62 Chippewa 359 Clark 296 Columbia 183 Crawford 211 Dane 590 Dodge 212 Door 32 Douglas 135 Dunn 245 Eau Claire 236 Florence 20 Fond du Lac 251 Forest 53 Grant 383 Green 244 Green Lake 48 Iowa 209 Iron 48 Jackson 218 Jefferson 182 Juneau 172 Kenosha 109 Kewaunee 93 La Crosse 249 Lafayette 217 Langlade 78 Lincoln 157 Manitowoc 269 Marathon 530 Marinette 135 Marquette 81 Menominee 25 Milwaukee 893 Monroe 374 Oconto 149 Oneida 61 Outagamie 290 Ozaukee 105 Pepin 57 Pierce 248 Polk 73 Portage 182 Price 104 Racine 133 Richland 298 Rock 304 Rusk 151 Sauk 271 Sawyer 97 Shawano 160 Sheboygan 240 St. Croix 298 Taylor 176 Trempealeau 260 Vernon 333 Vilas 29 Walworth 206 Washburn 49 Washington 162 Waukesha 369 Waupaca 169 Waushara 53 Winnebago 263 Wood 239

Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin on the same metric.

SC

South Carolina

6.17% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$9,490

WY

Wyoming

6.51% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$3,136
Selected

WI

Wisconsin

6.52% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$14,446

HI

Hawaii

6.53% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$1,195

NC

North Carolina

6.76% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$19,210

Bridges Needing Most Attention in Wisconsin

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

LRD CASBERG COULEE

Poor

Over: LONG COULEE CREEK

0.2M E JCT CTH V, La Crosse, WI

Built 1984 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 265

LRD IRR (ENSINGER

Poor

Over: BRUNSWEILER RIVER

0.7M E JCT STH 13, Ashland, WI

Built 1920 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 20

LRD N 50TH ST (DEA

Poor

Over: MENOMONEE RIVER

0.2M S JCT STATE ST, Milwaukee, WI

Built 1976 Load: 0.0 t ADT: 1

LRD PEDESTRIAN (WO

Poor

Over: MILWAUKEE RIVER

0.5M E JCT USH 45, Washington, WI

Built 1891 Load: 0.0 t

LRD ACCESS RD

Poor

Over: MENASHA CHANNEL

ACCESS TO PARKING LOT BY, Winnebago, WI

Built 1960 Load: 1.6 t ADT: 20

LRD MARKET RD

Poor

Over: BEAR CREEK

1.2M N JCT STH 76, Outagamie, WI

Built 1958 Load: 1.6 t ADT: 1,175

All Bridges in Wisconsin

LRD FISK AVE

Fair

Over: WEYHURST CREEK

0.3M E JCT CTH I, Winnebago, WI

Built 1977 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 221

CTH P

Fair

Over: USH 10-STH 441

0.7M S JCT CTH AP, Winnebago, WI

Built 1990 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 7,800

IH 41 SB

Fair

Over: STH 114

1.8M S JCT CTH II, Winnebago, WI

Built 1993 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 39,350

IH 41 NB

Fair

Over: STH 114

6.6M N JCT USH 45 TO N, Winnebago, WI

Built 1994 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 39,350

IH 41 NB

Fair

Over: LRD MAIN ST

1.1M N JCT STH 114 TO E, Winnebago, WI

Built 1994 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 44,050

IH 41 SB

Fair

Over: CTH BB

1.5M S JCT STH 125 TO E, Winnebago, WI

Built 1992 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 35,300

USH 45-STH 175

Fair

Over: GLATZ CREEK

3.0M N JCT STH 175 TO S, Winnebago, WI

Built 1995 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 8,119

USH 10 EB

Fair

Over: LRD FAIRVIEW RD

4.0M E JCT USH 45 TO S, Winnebago, WI

Built 2003 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 8,700

CTH Z

Fair

Over: FOURTEEN MILE CREEK

0.2M S JCT CTH D, Adams, WI

Built 1976 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 1,100

CTH N

Fair

Over: LITTLE ROCHE A CRI CREEK

0.3M N JCT CTH J, Adams, WI

Built 1965 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 580

LRD 27TH ST (DEAD

Fair

Over: BR ROCK CREEK

3.1M N JCT USH 8, Barron, WI

Built 1974 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 20

LRD 30TH ST

Fair

Over: MOOSE EAR CREEK

1.7M N JCT USH 8, Barron, WI

Built 1977 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 47

LRD 26TH AV

Fair

Over: BR RED CEDAR RIVER

0.5M W JCT CTH M, Barron, WI

Built 1970 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 88

LRD CARL BERG RD

Fair

Over: TRADE RIVER

0.8M E JCT STH 87, Burnett, WI

Built 1975 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 810

LRD 100TH AVENUE

Fair

Over: WOLF RIVER

0.9 M E 345TH STREET, Chippewa, WI

Built 1968 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 190

LRD MILLER AVE

Fair

Over: BR BEAR CREEK

1.4M N JCT CTH K, Clark, WI

Built 1961 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 34

LRD SAWYER RD

Fair

Over: N BR DUCK CREEK

1.6M S JCT CTH P, Columbia, WI

Built 1966 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 53

LRD GENRICH RD

Fair

Over: ROCKY RUN

1.0M S JCT STH 16, Columbia, WI

Built 1973 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 68

LRD E JOHNSON ST

Fair

Over: YAHARA RIVER

0.2M N JCT USH 151, Dane, WI

Built 1925 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 24,100

LRD WILLIAMSON ST

Fair

Over: YAHARA RIVER

0.2M S JCT USH 151, Dane, WI

Built 1905 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 16,800

LRD 930TH ST

Fair

Over: EIGHTEEN MILE CREEK

0.2M S JCT STH 40, Dunn, WI

Built 1960 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 101

CTH A

Fair

Over: EIGHTEEN MILE CREEK

0.1M S JCT STH 40, Dunn, WI

Built 1989 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 213

LRD 1290TH AVE

Fair

Over: FLAYTON CREEK

0.1M E JCT CTH V, Dunn, WI

Built 1989 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 40

CTH BB

Fair

Over: STREAM TO TAINTER LAKE

0.4M N JCT CTHB, Dunn, WI

Built 1990 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 385

CTH U

Fair

Over: BIG CREEK

0.1M N CTH YYY, Eau Claire, WI

Built 1964 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 153

LRD CAVE HOLLOW RD

Fair

Over: OTTER CREEK

2.4M E JCT STH 80, Iowa, WI

Built 1987 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 78

LRD PINE CREEK RD

Fair

Over: BR SQUAW CREEK

0.2M N JCT CTH P, Jackson, WI

Built 1960 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 94

LRD CENTER DR RD

Fair

Over: BR GALENA RIVER

0.7M W JCT CTH X, Lafayette, WI

Built 1950 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 88

LRD OAK CREEK PARK

Fair

Over: OAK CREEK

0.5M S JCT STH 32, Milwaukee, WI

Built 1931 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 1,762

LRD W WASHINGTON B

Fair

Over: LRD MARTHA WASHINGTON DR

0.9M E JCT STH 181, Milwaukee, WI

Built 1964 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 2,250

LRD HONEY CREEK PA

Fair

Over: HONEY CREEK

0.1M N JCT USH 18, Milwaukee, WI

Built 1933 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 7,380

LRD LANDMARK AVE

Fair

Over: BR MORRIS CREEK

0.1M S JCT STH 71, Monroe, WI

Built 1900 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 23

CTH S

Fair

Over: DUSTIN CREEK

1.6M E JCT STH 27, Monroe, WI

Built 1990 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 207

CTH AA

Fair

Over: BR SILVER CREEK

0.2M S JCT CTH A, Monroe, WI

Built 1981 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 283

LRD NOVENA RD (DEA

Fair

Over: BR KICKAPOO RIVER

0.1M N JCT EMBER AVE, Monroe, WI

Built 1983 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 20

LRD 20TH AVE

Fair

Over: HORSE CREEK

0.3M W JCT CTH M, Polk, WI

Built 1973 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 54

LRD BURLINGTON RD

Fair

Over: NEWCOMB VALLEY CREEK

0.1M S JCT STH 95, Trempealeau, WI

Built 1982 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 47

LRD MUSKEGO DAM RD

Fair

Over: MUSKEGO CANAL

0.5M W JCT STH 36, Waukesha, WI

Built 1925 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 3,100

LRD EAGLE RD

Fair

Over: YELLOW RIVER

0.7M N JCT CTH H, Wood, WI

Built 1981 Load: 40.5 t ADT: 65

CTH G/CHICAGO ST.

Fair

Over: TRIBUTARY TO E RIVER FLO

0.1M E OF CTH GV, Brown, WI

Built 2016 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 4,700

USH 151 SB

Fair

Over: LRD PROSPECT AVE

2.9 MI S JCT CTH A, Dodge, WI

Built 2012 Load: 40.8 t ADT: 12,050

CTH H

Fair

Over: S FK ELK CREEK

0.4M N JCT STH 121, Buffalo, WI

Built 2012 Load: 41.1 t ADT: 336

LRD MEMORIAL DR

Fair

Over: ROOT RIVER

0.6M N JCT STH 20, Racine, WI

Built 1936 Load: 41.1 t ADT: 16,600

IH USH 51-IH 39 NB

Fair

Over: USH BUS 51 & R.R.

AT INTERSECTION, Marathon, WI

Built 2012 Load: 41.5 t ADT: 39,600

STH 66

Fair

Over: ALDER CR

3.17 MILES E. OF STH 34, Wood, WI

Built 2012 Load: 41.8 t ADT: 4,600

CTH F

Fair

Over: SWAMP CREEK

11.6M E JCT STH 13, Ashland, WI

Built 1992 Load: 42.1 t ADT: 643

CTH D SUMNER ST

Fair

Over: LAKE CHETEK

0.2M N JCT CTH D TO W, Barron, WI

Built 1973 Load: 42.1 t ADT: 6,800

CTH V

Fair

Over: BRILL RIVER

1.5M E JCT CTH M, Barron, WI

Built 1994 Load: 42.1 t ADT: 1,013

STH 13

Fair

Over: SIOUX RIVER

5.2M N JCT CTH C, Bayfield, WI

Built 2003 Load: 42.1 t ADT: 3,900

STH 13

Fair

Over: SIOUX RIVER

5.4M N JCT CTH C, Bayfield, WI

Built 2003 Load: 42.1 t ADT: 3,900

Showing 5,501-5,550 of 14,446 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 Wisconsin's inventory picture to drill to a county or a specific span.

  • Browse counties in Wisconsin 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. Wisconsin 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.