Structure 7900630009300 · Merrimack County, NH

Short Falls Road over Suncook River

Carries Short Falls Road over Suncook River, .5 Mi S. Jct. RT 28.

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 overall7/9 · Good
0 failed4 poor6 fair9 excellent

Elevation

Side view, colored by inspection rating
SEMI-TRUCK · 72 FT129 FT OVERALL25 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 7/9Superstructure 7/9Substructure 7/9

129 ft end to end, longest span 55 ft. 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.

Built1950rebuilt 1992
Length128.9 ft39.3 m
Daily traffic1,540counted 2023
Last inspectedMay 2024every 24 months

Location

StateNew Hampshire
CountyMerrimack
Location.5 Mi S. Jct. RT 28
CarriesShort Falls Road
CrossesSuncook River
Coordinates43.20192, -71.38232

Physical Characteristics

MaterialSteel Continuous
DesignStringer/Multi-beam
Total Length128.9 ft (39.3 m)
Max Span55.1 ft (16.8 m)
Deck Width29.5 ft (9 m)
Deck Area353.7 sq m
Main Spans3
Year Built1950 (reconstructed 1992)

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic1,540 (2023)
Truck Traffic4%
Lanes On Bridge2

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionMay 2024
Inspection FrequencyEvery 24 months
OwnerState Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceBridge is possibly eligible (requires evaluation)
Scour Critical8 — Stable, low risk
Structure Number007900630009300

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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