Structure H120402WLDOTNBI · Essex County, MA

I 495 NB over Water Merrimack River

Carries I 495 NB over Water Merrimack River, At Methuen Town Line.

Overall conditionPoor

Set by its lowest-rated component: Superstructure at 3 of 9.

How ratings work
Deck6/9 · Satisfactory
Superstructuresets the rating3/9 · Serious
Substructure5/9 · Fair
Channelnot part of overall6/9 · Satisfactory
0 failed4 poor6 fair9 excellent

Elevation

Side view, colored by inspection rating
SEMI-TRUCK · 72 FT946 FT OVERALL200 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 6/9Superstructure 3/9 · sets the ratingSubstructure 5/9

946 ft end to end, longest span 193 ft: about 2.6 football fields. 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 multi-beam bridge.

Built196462 years old
Length946.2 ft288.4 m
Daily traffic60,056counted 2022
Last inspectedNovember 2024every 6 months

Location

StateMassachusetts
CountyEssex
LocationAt Methuen Town Line
CarriesI 495 NB
CrossesWater Merrimack River
Coordinates42.75453, -71.12705

Physical Characteristics

MaterialSteel Continuous
DesignStringer/Multi-beam
Total Length946.2 ft (288.4 m)
Max Span192.9 ft (58.8 m)
Deck Width52.2 ft (15.9 m)
Deck Area4585.6 sq m
Main Spans7
Year Built1964

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic60,056 (2022)
Truck Traffic9%
Lanes On Bridge3

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionNovember 2024
Inspection FrequencyEvery 6 months
OwnerState Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceBridge is not eligible for the National Register
Scour Critical3 — Scour critical
Structure NumberH120402WLDOTNBI

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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