McDowell County Bridge Report Card

McDowell County scores 31 out of 100 on BridgeLookup's Bridge Condition Exposure Score, based on FHWA National Bridge Inventory records.

F31 / 100

Local infrastructure snapshot

McDowell County, West Virginia

McDowell County has 224 bridges in the National Bridge Inventory, with 63 rated poor and 19 rated scour-critical. Its poor-condition share of 28.1% is above the 17.8% statewide average. Poor-condition bridges carry about 20,900 daily vehicle crossings.

224Total Bridges

63Poor (28.1%)

145Fair (64.7%)

19Scour-Critical

Quote-Ready Local Facts

28.1%of county bridges are in poor condition, compared with 17.8% statewide and 6.7% nationally.

20,900daily vehicle crossings are on poor-condition bridges in the county.

19bridges are rated scour-critical, or 8.5% of the county bridge inventory.

Copyable Facts for Reporters

BridgeLookup.com gives McDowell County a Bridge Condition Exposure Score of 31/100 (F). The county has 224 bridges in the National Bridge Inventory, including 63 in poor condition and 19 rated scour-critical. Poor-condition bridges carry about 20,900 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	28.1%	40.0
Poor-condition traffic exposure	25	16.5% of measured traffic	12.4
Scour-critical bridge share	20	8.5%	17.0
Average age vs national baseline	10	42 years vs 48 nationally	0.0
Traffic-data completeness	5	126,639 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	28.1%
State Poor-Condition Share	17.8%
National Poor-Condition Share	6.7%
County Scour-Critical Share	8.5%
Average Bridge Age	42 years
Poor-Condition Traffic Exposure	20,900 vehicles/day

Bridges to Watch

Busiest Poor-Condition BridgeUS 52 over Spice Creek — 3,200 vehicles/day Oldest Listed BridgeCounty Route 7 over Tug Fork — built in 1890 All County BridgesBrowse every bridge record in McDowell County.

Top Bridges to Watch in McDowell County

Bridge	Reason	Condition	Daily Traffic	Year Built
CR 3/1 over Greenbrier Fork	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	750	1936
Wv 161 over South Fork	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	750	1945
County Route 7 over Tug Fork	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1890
County Route 9/6 over Dry Fork	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	500	1928
CR 3/2 over George Branch	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	200	1992
Co 1/4 over Horse Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	100	1990
Co 52/98 over Elkhorn Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	90	1950
Ha 902/47 over Panther Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	60	1994
CR 102/71 over Elkhorn Creek	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	40	1974
Harp 958 over Dry Fork	Poor condition + traffic exposure	Poor	40	1977

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.