Santa Cruz County Bridge Report Card

Santa Cruz County scores 38 out of 100 on BridgeLookup's Bridge Condition Exposure Score, based on FHWA National Bridge Inventory records.

F38 / 100

Local infrastructure snapshot

Santa Cruz County, California

Santa Cruz County has 194 bridges in the National Bridge Inventory, with 32 rated poor and 18 rated scour-critical. Its poor-condition share of 16.5% is above the 4.9% statewide average. Poor-condition bridges carry about 185,125 daily vehicle crossings.

194Total Bridges

32Poor (16.5%)

83Fair (42.8%)

18Scour-Critical

Quote-Ready Local Facts

16.5%of county bridges are in poor condition, compared with 4.9% statewide and 6.7% nationally.

185,125daily vehicle crossings are on poor-condition bridges in the county.

18bridges are rated scour-critical, or 9.3% of the county bridge inventory.

Copyable Facts for Reporters

BridgeLookup.com gives Santa Cruz County a Bridge Condition Exposure Score of 38/100 (F). The county has 194 bridges in the National Bridge Inventory, including 32 in poor condition and 18 rated scour-critical. Poor-condition bridges carry about 185,125 daily vehicle crossings. Poor condition does not mean unsafe; bridges judged unsafe are closed or restricted by transportation agencies.

Download all county report-card scores as CSV.

How the Score Breaks Down

Factor	Weight	County Value	Penalty
Poor-condition bridge share	40	16.5%	33.0
Poor-condition traffic exposure	25	6.6% of measured traffic	4.9
Scour-critical bridge share	20	9.3%	18.6
Average age vs national baseline	10	62 years vs 48 nationally	5.7
Traffic-data completeness	5	2,821,811 measured daily crossings	0.0

Score = 100 minus weighted penalties. The score is a comparative research signal, not an official safety rating. Read the full methodology.

County Comparisons

County Poor-Condition Share	16.5%
State Poor-Condition Share	4.9%
National Poor-Condition Share	6.7%
County Scour-Critical Share	9.3%
Average Bridge Age	62 years
Poor-Condition Traffic Exposure	185,125 vehicles/day

Bridges to Watch

Busiest Poor-Condition BridgeState Route 1 NB over State Route 17 — 30,000 vehicles/day Oldest Listed BridgeGlenwood DR over Bean Creek — built in 1915 All County BridgesBrowse every bridge record in Santa Cruz County.

Top Bridges to Watch in Santa Cruz County

Bridge	Reason	Condition	Daily Traffic	Year Built
State Route 9 over Kings Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	5,000	1927
East Zayante RD over Zayante Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	2,000	1948
Larkspur ST over San Lorenzo River	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	1,500	1957
Green Valley RD over Casserly Creek Trib No 1	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1915
N Big Trees Prk RD over San Lorenzo River	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1931
Lompico Road over Lompico Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1940
Swanton RD over Big Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1950
Eureka Canyon RD over Shingle Mill Gulch	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1950
Rancho Rio Avenue over Newell Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1958
Brimblecom RD over San Lorenzo River	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	400	1948

Important safety note

Poor condition does not mean a bridge is unsafe. It means at least one major component has significant deterioration and the bridge is a priority for maintenance, repair, or replacement. Bridges judged unsafe are closed or restricted by transportation agencies.