National Bridge Inventory: Tennessee



  • The state has identified needed repairs on 7,394 bridges.
  • This compares to 7,397 bridges that needed work in 2019.
  • Over the life of the IIJA, Tennessee will receive a total of $403.3 million in bridge formula funds, which will help make needed repairs.
  • Tennessee currently has access to $161.3 million of that total, and has committed $47.1 million towards 16 projects as of June 2023.
  • Of the 20,373 bridges in the state, 898, or 4.4 percent, are classified as structurally deficient. This means one of the key elements is in poor or worse condition.
  • This is up from 887 bridges classified as structurally deficient in 2019.
  • The deck area of structurally deficient bridges accounts for 4.9 percent of total deck area on all structures.

County Year Built Daily Crossings Type of Bridge Location
Davidson 1958 155,629 Urban Interstate I24 over Mill Creek
Davidson 1960 154,055 Urban Interstate I40 over I40 Str 5B / I24
Knox 1965 139,697 Urban Interstate I40 Ll over I40-Ll / 17th. Street
Knox 1965 139,697 Urban Interstate I40 over I40 / University Ave.
Knox 1965 139,697 Urban Interstate I40 Rl over I40-Rl / 17th. Street
Davidson 1963 131,122 Urban Interstate I40 over Mill Creek
Hamilton 1960 115,412 Urban Interstate I24 EBL & WBL over Branch
Davidson 1961 113,584 Urban Interstate I-24 WB Ramp over I-24 EB
Hamilton 1959 110,093 Urban Interstate I75 over Branch
Williamson 1963 109,713 Urban Interstate I65 over Branch
Shelby 1966 105,381 Urban Interstate I-240SB 348605B over I-240 EB / Agnes Pl & RR
Hamilton 1990 105,057 Urban Interstate I24 WB over I24 WB / A660 & CSX RR
Davidson 1962 97,513 Urban Interstate I40 over I40 / Westboro Road
Hamilton 1965 94,104 Urban Interstate I24 EBL over Missionary Ridge
Hamilton 1964 94,104 Urban Interstate I24 WBL over Missionary Ridge
Williamson 1963 94,031 Urban Interstate I65 over I65 / SR106 & Harpeth Rv
Williamson 1963 94,031 Urban Interstate I65 over I65 / SR106 & Harpeth Rv
Knox 1967 77,847 Urban Interstate I40 over I40 / Asheville Hwy.
Davidson 1972 74,643 Rural Interstate I-24E over Old Hickory Blvd.
Davidson 1972 74,643 Rural Interstate I-24W over Old Hickory Blvd.
Davidson 1962 71,975 Urban freeway/expressway Briley Pkwy. over Cumberland River & B428
Hamilton 1964 69,132 Urban Interstate I24 over Browns Ferry Rd(FAU 3622
Hamilton 1964 69,132 Urban Interstate I24 over Brown S Ferry (FAU 3622)
Shelby 1958 59,405 Urban other principal arterial Fas 177 over Wolf River
Sumner 2006 59,055 Urban freeway/expressway Fap 386 over Sr386-Ll / Sr6 & Ramp F
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 626 705,521 23,357,610 21 25,427 973,512
Rural arterial 1,081 939,746 8,340,061 29 45,091 223,381
Rural minor arterial 1,211 728,284 5,287,284 56 39,376 226,919
Rural major collector 1,884 666,111 2,874,282 98 46,743 162,222
Rural minor collector 2,901 705,980 1,968,000 126 36,680 92,864
Rural local road 6,341 949,762 1,395,995 316 46,011 66,009
Urban Interstate 999 1,698,616 76,853,482 25 39,128 2,464,255
Urban freeway/expressway 379 652,945 14,155,592 7 16,473 351,244
Urban other principal arterial 1,320 1,636,535 26,737,198 67 130,375 1,387,835
Urban minor arterial 1,059 982,532 12,100,231 48 52,102 720,679
Urban collector 1,016 431,402 4,488,428 41 16,383 159,590
Urban local road 1,556 396,176 2,242,933 64 21,664 95,527
Total 20,373 10,493,610 179,801,096 898 515,453 6,924,037
Type of Work Number of Bridges Cost to Repair
(in millions)
Daily Crossings Area of Bridges
(sq. meters)
Bridge replacement 865 $666 4,068,536 345,907
Widening & rehabilitation 3,456 $1,823 20,575,495 1,396,001
Rehabilitation 2,608 $2,549 43,111,817 1,723,066
Deck rehabilitation/replacement 123 $284 1,145,493 190,131
Other structural work 342 $274 1,860,927 210,981
Total 7,394 $5,597 70,762,268 3,866,087

About the data:

Data and cost estimates are from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) National Bridge Inventory (NBI), downloaded on July 3, 2023. 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 2022 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.

40
Compared to 41 in 2022

in the nation in % of structurally deficient bridges

1. West Virginia 20.0%
39. Maryland 5.0%
40. Tennessee 4.0%
41. Minnesota 4.0%

20
Compared to 20 in 2022

in the nation in # of structurally deficient bridges

1. Iowa 4,558
19. Wisconsin 943
20. Tennessee 898
21. Texas 708

28
Compared to 25 in 2022

in the nation in % of structurally deficient bridge deck area

1. Rhode Island 15.0%
27. Arkansas 5.0%
28. Tennessee 5.0%
29. Kentucky 5.0%
Full State Ranking

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  • Source: Data is from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) National Bridge Inventory (NBI), downloaded on July 3, 2023. Note that specific conditions on bridges may have changed as a result of recent work or updated inspections.

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