A report from the American Roads and Transport Builders Association (ARTBA) has found that one third of all bridges in America are in a state of disrepair.
The ARBTA's data from August 2024 showed that 221,800 spans – the structure between each bridge end – were in need of repair, and 76,175 bridges needed to be replaced. This means that 36 percent of all US bridges, which are crossed by motorists 168.5 million times a day, are in need of repair.
According to the report, 42,067 of the bridges in need of repair are rated as being in poor condition, and classified as "structurally deficient." To be structurally deficient a key element of the bridge – the deck, superstructure, substructure, or culverts – has to be rated in poor or worse condition by the Department of Transportation (DOT) and National Bridge Inventory (NBI).
However, John Schneidawind from the ARBTA told Newsweek that just because a bridge is classified as structurally deficient, doesn't mean it's dangerous. "That determination is made solely by state bridge inspectors," he said.
The state with the highest number of bridges in disrepair is Iowa, with 4,544 bridges, 19 percent of their bridges, classified as structurally deficient.
Newsweek contacted several Iowa state representatives for comment.
West Virginia also has 19 percent of its bridges classified as structurally deficient, however that is only 1,370 bridges in total. Pennsylvania, on the other hand, has only 13 percent of its bridges classified as structurally deficient, but that is a total of 2,932 bridges.
Nevada has the best-maintained bridges in the country, with only 24 bridges, one percent of all state bridges, classified as structurally deficient.
Although the number of bridges in need of repair appears high, these figures are down from where they were in 2023, where 42,391 needed repairs. Schneidawind told Newsweek: "Progress is happening, thanks in part to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law signed into law in Nov. 2021."
A White House statement released after The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, otherwise known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), was enacted said the IIJA would "rebuild America's roads, bridges and rails, expand access to clean drinking water, ensure every American has access to high-speed internet."
Schneidawind told Newsweek: "States have received $15.9 billion in the first three years of the IIJA's new $27.5 billion formula bridge program and, to date, have committed 46 percent ($7.3 billion) of these resources to over 4,170 bridge projects.
"The remaining 54 percent ($8.5 billion) of already released bridge funds – plus the $10.6 billion that will be provided in the next two years – will support needed bridge improvements well into the future."
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