Structure 1775 · Aiken County, SC

US 278 over Horse Creek

Carries US 278 over Horse Creek, 5 Mi SE Of Augusta.

Overall conditionPoor

Set by its lowest-rated component: Superstructure at 4 of 9.

How ratings work
Deck5/9 · Fair
Superstructuresets the rating4/9 · Poor
Substructure5/9 · Fair
Channelnot part of overall7/9 · Good
0 failed4 poor6 fair9 excellent

Elevation

Side view, colored by inspection rating
SEMI-TRUCK · 72 FT240 FT OVERALL50 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 5/9Superstructure 4/9 · sets the ratingSubstructure 5/9

240 ft end to end, longest span 30 ft: about 3 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 tee-beam bridge.

Built195175 years old
Length240.2 ft73.2 m
Daily traffic8,100counted 2023
Last inspectedJanuary 2025every 6 months

Location

StateSouth Carolina
CountyAiken
Location5 Mi SE Of Augusta
CarriesUS 278
CrossesHorse Creek
Coordinates33.47836, -81.90787

Physical Characteristics

MaterialConcrete
DesignTee Beam
Total Length240.2 ft (73.2 m)
Max Span29.9 ft (9.1 m)
Deck Width59.7 ft (18.2 m)
Deck Area1332.2 sq m
Main Spans8
Year Built1951

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic8,100 (2023)
Truck Traffic8%
Lanes On Bridge4

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionJanuary 2025
Inspection FrequencyEvery 6 months
OwnerState Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceBridge is not eligible for the National Register
Scour Critical5 — Stable for scour
Structure Number000000000001775

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.

Nearby Bridges