Structure 1684 028 · New Castle County, DE

South Heald ST over Norfolk Southern

Carries South Heald ST over Norfolk Southern, South Wilmington.

Overall conditionPoor

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

How ratings work
Deck7/9 · Good
Superstructuresets the rating3/9 · Serious
Substructure5/9 · Fair
0 failed4 poor6 fair9 excellent

Elevation

Side view, colored by inspection rating
SEMI-TRUCK · 72 FT608 FT OVERALL100 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 7/9Superstructure 3/9 · sets the ratingSubstructure 5/9

608 ft end to end: about 1.7 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.

Built194284 years old
Length607.9 ft185.3 m
Daily traffic7,915counted 2023
Last inspectedJune 2024every 24 months

Location

StateDelaware
CountyNew Castle
LocationSouth Wilmington
CarriesSouth Heald ST
CrossesNorfolk Southern
Coordinates39.72598, -75.54603

Physical Characteristics

MaterialSteel
DesignStringer/Multi-beam
Total Length607.9 ft (185.3 m)
Max Span47.2 ft (14.4 m)
Deck Width58.1 ft (17.7 m)
Deck Area3279.8 sq m
Main Spans1
Year Built1942

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic7,915 (2023)
Truck Traffic7%
Lanes On Bridge4
Lanes Under Bridge1

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionJune 2024
Inspection FrequencyEvery 24 months
OwnerState Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceBridge is eligible for the National Register
Scour CriticalNot applicable
Structure Number1684 028

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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