Buena Vista County Bridge Report Card

Buena Vista County scores 52 out of 100 on BridgeLookup's Bridge Condition Exposure Score, based on FHWA National Bridge Inventory records.

F52 / 100

Local infrastructure snapshot

Buena Vista County, Iowa

Buena Vista County has 157 bridges in the National Bridge Inventory, with 54 rated poor and 1 rated scour-critical. Its poor-condition share of 34.4% is above the 18.6% statewide average. Poor-condition bridges carry about 6,734 daily vehicle crossings.

157Total Bridges

54Poor (34.4%)

47Fair (29.9%)

1Scour-Critical

Quote-Ready Local Facts

34.4%of county bridges are in poor condition, compared with 18.6% statewide and 6.7% nationally.

6,734daily vehicle crossings are on poor-condition bridges in the county.

1bridges are rated scour-critical, or 0.6% of the county bridge inventory.

Copyable Facts for Reporters

BridgeLookup.com gives Buena Vista County a Bridge Condition Exposure Score of 52/100 (F). The county has 157 bridges in the National Bridge Inventory, including 54 in poor condition and 1 rated scour-critical. Poor-condition bridges carry about 6,734 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	34.4%	40.0
Poor-condition traffic exposure	25	9.3% of measured traffic	7.0
Scour-critical bridge share	20	0.6%	1.3
Average age vs national baseline	10	46 years vs 48 nationally	0.0
Traffic-data completeness	5	72,526 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	34.4%
State Poor-Condition Share	18.6%
National Poor-Condition Share	6.7%
County Scour-Critical Share	0.6%
Average Bridge Age	46 years
Poor-Condition Traffic Exposure	6,734 vehicles/day

Bridges to Watch

Busiest Poor-Condition BridgeFM over Raccoon River — 1,228 vehicles/day Oldest Listed BridgeLocal over Stream — built in 1900 All County BridgesBrowse every bridge record in Buena Vista County.

Top Bridges to Watch in Buena Vista County

Bridge	Reason	Condition	Daily Traffic	Year Built
FM over Brooks Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	509	1966
FM over Raccoon River	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	1,228	1976
FM over Sm Stream	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	569	1974
FM over Little Maple River	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	569	1974
FM over Dd 34 Lat #2	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	489	1979
FM over Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	469	1970
FM over Maple River	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	450	1964
FM over Small	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	390	1978
FM over Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	339	1964
FM over Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	249	1976

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.