Structure 5140176P0000000 · Avery County, NC

Blue Ridge Parkway over Ravine

Carries Blue Ridge Parkway over Ravine, 2.54 Miles From U.s. Rout.

Overall conditionGood

Set by its lowest-rated component: Deck and Superstructure and Substructure at 7 of 9.

How ratings work
Decksets the rating7/9 · Good
Superstructuresets the rating7/9 · Good
Substructuresets the rating7/9 · Good
Channelnot part of overall8/9 · Very Good
0 failed4 poor6 fair9 excellent

Elevation

Side view, colored by inspection rating
SEMI-TRUCK · 72 FT276 FT OVERALL50 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 7/9Superstructure 7/9Substructure 7/9

276 ft end to end, longest span 138 ft: about 4 semi-trucks nose to tail. Lengths and the semi-truck on the deck are drawn to the same scale. Each part is colored by its latest inspection rating. The inventory records lengths but not heights or the layout of the shorter spans, so those are drawn as typical for a box-beam bridge.

Built198739 years old
Length275.9 ft84.1 m
Daily traffic2,300counted 2023
Last inspectedJuly 2023every 24 months

Location

StateNorth Carolina
CountyAvery
Location2.54 Miles From U.s. Rout
CarriesBlue Ridge Parkway
CrossesRavine
Coordinates36.09900, -81.79069

Physical Characteristics

MaterialPrestressed Concrete Continuous
DesignBox Beam - Single/Spread
Total Length275.9 ft (84.1 m)
Max Span138.1 ft (42.1 m)
Deck Width38.7 ft (11.8 m)
Deck Area992.4 sq m
Main Spans2
Year Built1987

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic2,300 (2023)
Truck Traffic1%
Lanes On Bridge2

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionJuly 2023
Inspection FrequencyEvery 24 months
OwnerNational Park Service
Historical SignificanceBridge is not eligible for the National Register
Scour CriticalNot applicable
Structure Number5140176P0000000

How Bridge Ratings Work

Inspectors rate each major part of a bridge (the deck you drive on, the superstructure of beams that holds it up, and the substructure of piers and abutments beneath) on a 0–9 scale. A bridge's overall condition is its lowest of those ratings, so one deteriorated component makes the whole bridge "poor."

0Failed
1Imminent failure
2Critical
3Serious
4Poor
5Fair
6Satisfactory
7Good
8Very good
9Excellent
Good · lowest component 7–9
Fair · lowest component 5–6
Poor · lowest component 0–4

A poor rating is not a closure. It means the bridge is flagged for priority repair or replacement; bridges judged unsafe are closed or posted with weight limits. The waterway (channel) rating is reported, but it does not count toward the overall classification.

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