Structure 121020017711297 · Harris County, TX
Carries Ramp K over Buffalo Bayou, Intersection Ramp L.
Set by its lowest-rated component: Superstructure and Substructure at 6 of 9.
How ratings work1,041 ft end to end, longest span 261 ft: about 2.9 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 box-beam bridge.
| State | Texas |
| County | Harris |
| Location | Intersection Ramp L |
| Carries | Ramp K |
| Crosses | Buffalo Bayou |
| Coordinates | 29.76577, -95.34696 |
| Material | Steel Continuous |
| Design | Box Beam - Multiple |
| Total Length | 1041.0 ft (317.3 m) |
| Max Span | 261.2 ft (79.6 m) |
| Deck Width | 32.8 ft (10 m) |
| Deck Area | 3,173 sq m |
| Main Spans | 3 |
| Year Built | 2002 |
| Avg Daily Traffic | 86,000 (2010) |
| That is about 86,000 vehicles per lane per day — beyond what any U.S. road carries (the busiest freeways run about 25,000–30,000). It is almost certainly a data-entry error in the National Bridge Inventory, so we leave this bridge out of traffic rankings. | |
| Lanes On Bridge | 1 |
| Last Inspection | September 2024 |
| Inspection Frequency | Every 24 months |
| Owner | State Highway Agency |
| Historical Significance | Bridge is not eligible for the National Register |
| Scour Critical | 8 — Stable, low risk |
| Structure Number | 121020017711297 |
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."
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.