National Bridge Inventory: Delaware



  • The state has identified needed repairs on 315 bridges.
  • This compares to 317 bridges that needed work in 2021.
  • Over the life of the IIJA, Delaware will receive a total of $225.0 million in bridge formula funds, which will help make needed repairs.
  • Delaware currently has access to $180.0 million of that total, and has committed $66.1 million towards 40 projects as of June 2025.
  • Of the 874 bridges in the state, 10, or 1.1 percent, are classified as structurally deficient. This means one of the key elements is in poor or worse condition.
  • This is down from 17 bridges classified as structurally deficient in 2021.
  • The deck area of structurally deficient bridges accounts for 3.2 percent of total deck area on all structures.

Top Most Traveled Structurally Deficient Bridges in Delaware

County Year Built Daily Crossings Type of Bridge Location
New Castle 1965 84,782 Urban Interstate I 495 SB over I 95 NB
Sussex 1957 11,464 Rural major collector SR 54 over Assawoman Bay
New Castle 1920 11,020 Rural minor arterial Dupont Pkw/US13 SB over Blackbird Creek
Kent 1965 8,726 Urban collector Lebanon Rd/SR10 WB over St. Jones River
New Castle 1942 7,915 Urban minor arterial South Heald St over Norfolk Southern
New Castle 1969 1,203 Rural arterial Delaware Rt. 9 over C&D Canal
New Castle 1973 840 Rural major collector SR 9 over Appoquinimink River
Sussex 1973 196 Rural local road Craigs Mill Rd over Craigs Pond Spillway
Kent 1977 99 Urban local road Maple Ave over Mispillion River
Sussex 1931 78 Rural local road Cods Road over Slaughter Creek

Bridge Inventory: Delaware

Type of Bridge Number of Bridges Area of All Bridges
(sq. meters)
Daily Crossings on All Bridges Number of Structurally Deficient Bridges Area of Structurally Deficient Bridges
(sq. meters)
Daily Crossings on Structurally Deficient Bridges
Rural Interstate 0 0 0 0 0 0
Rural arterial 101 225,828 2,110,999 1 24,672 1,203
Rural minor arterial 22 33,339 219,407 1 159 11,020
Rural major collector 91 45,963 377,775 2 2,288 12,304
Rural minor collector 31 9,422 126,782 0 0 0
Rural local road 163 24,789 174,574 2 122 274
Urban Interstate 90 335,507 4,180,199 1 1,556 84,782
Urban freeway/expressway 30 36,209 624,103 0 0 0
Urban other principal arterial 123 178,193 2,873,414 0 0 0
Urban minor arterial 77 78,141 812,634 1 3,280 7,915
Urban collector 81 37,441 517,591 1 969 8,726
Urban local road 65 24,252 120,832 1 144 99
Total 874 1,029,084 12,138,310 10 33,190 126,323

Proposed Bridge Work

Type of Work Number of Bridges Cost to Repair
(in millions)
Daily Crossings Area of Bridges
(sq. meters)
Bridge replacement 129 $561 2,756,076 118,975
Widening & rehabilitation 20 $63 297,681 19,557
Rehabilitation 135 $1,085 1,781,076 329,794
Deck rehabilitation/replacement 0 $0 0 0
Other structural work 31 $248 672,380 77,187
Total 315 $1,957 5,507,213 545,514

About the data:

Data and cost estimates are from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) National Bridge Inventory (NBI), downloaded on June 24, 2025. Note that specific conditions on bridges may have changed as a result of recent work or updated inspections.

Effective January 1, 2018, FHWA changed the definition of structurally deficient as part of the final rule on highway and bridge performance measures, published May 20, 2017 pursuant to the 2012 federal aid highway bill Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). Two measures that were previously used to classify bridges as structurally deficient are no longer used. This includes bridges where the overall structural evaluation was rated in poor or worse condition, or where the adequacy of waterway openings was insufficient.

The new definition limits the classification to bridges where one of the key structural elements—the deck, superstructure, substructure or culverts, are rated in poor or worse condition. During inspection, the conditions of a variety of bridge elements are rated on a scale of 0 (failed condition) to 9 (excellent condition). A rating of 4 is considered “poor” condition.

Cost estimates have been derived by ARTBA, based on 2023 average bridge replacement costs for structures on and off the National Highway System, published by FHWA. Bridge rehabilitation costs are estimated to be 68 percent of replacement costs. A bridge is considered to need repair if the structure has identified repairs as part of the NBI, a repair cost estimate is supplied by the bridge owner or the bridge is classified as structurally deficient. Please note that for a few states, the number of bridges needing to be repaired can vary significantly from year to year, and reflects the data entered by the state.

Bridges are classified by FHWA into types based on the functional classification of the roadway on the bridge. Interstates comprise routes officially designated by the Secretary of Transportation. Other principal arterials serve major centers of urban areas or provide mobility through rural areas. Freeways and expressways have directional lanes generally separated by a physical barrier, and access/egress points generally limited to on- and off-ramps. Minor arterials serve smaller areas and are used for trips of moderate length. Collectors funnel traffic from local roads to the arterial network; major collectors have higher speed limits and traffic volumes and are longer in length and spaced at greater intervals, while minor collectors are shorter and provide service to smaller communities. Local roads do not carry through traffic and are intended for short distance travel.

50
Compared to 49 in 2024

in the nation in % of structurally deficient bridges

1. Iowa 19.0%
49. Texas 1.0%
50. Delaware 1.0%
51. Arizona 1.0%

51
Compared to 51 in 2024

in the nation in # of structurally deficient bridges

1. Iowa 4,424
50. Nevada 22
51. Delaware 10

41
Compared to 45 in 2024

in the nation in % of structurally deficient bridge deck area

1. West Virginia 13.0%
40. Kansas 3.0%
41. Delaware 3.0%
42. Mississippi 3.0%
Full State Ranking

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  • Source: Data is from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) National Bridge Inventory (NBI), downloaded on June 24, 2025. Note that specific conditions on bridges may have changed as a result of recent work or updated inspections.

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