Bridges on the Brink

Cracks in the Interstate 65 Bridge over Little Buck Creek

The bridges that hold together our state’s transportation system are desperately in need of major investment and repair and limit the ability to move both commuters and freight. By ignoring them, we not only deprive Hoosiers of desperately needed jobs, but also run the risk of deadly structural failures.

Across Indiana, 4,111 bridges – 22 percent of all bridges – are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete and nearly a third of major roads are in mediocre or poor condition.

Many of our state’s most heavily used deficient bridges are also concentrated in its most populous and economically vital areas, including the Indianapolis, Gary and South Bend metropolitan areas.

The map below shows  bridges with average daily traffic of 5,000 or more that have been rated structurally deficient by the U.S. DOT Federal Highway Administration.

View Indiana's Structurally Deficient Bridges in a larger map

Time is running out for many bridges, which were typically built to last 50 years and Indiana’s most heavily used bridges were built 55 years ago on average, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.