Scour Critical Bridges

23,522 bridges across the US at risk from water erosion around foundations.

Scour Critical Bridges

Scour is the erosion of soil and rock around a bridge's foundation caused by moving water. When foundations are exposed or undermined, a bridge can collapse even if its deck and superstructure are in good condition. Scour is the leading cause of bridge failures in the US. These 23,522 bridges have been identified as vulnerable to scour damage.

Bridge	State	Scour Status	Condition	Year Built	ADT
ROSE CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
BUFFALO CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
COTTONWOOD CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
WHISKEY RUN	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
LITTLE NEMAHA RIVER N FK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
ROCK CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1930	40
DRY CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
N FK ELKHORN RIVER	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
SHELL CREEK TRIBUTARY	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	1976	40
LITTLE BLUE RIVER	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	40
WHITEWATER CREEK	Montana	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1976	39
BEAR CREEK	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	2003	38
MEDINA RIVER	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1940	38
BEAVER BROOK	Maine	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	2020	37
GALIEN RIVER	Michigan	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1930	36
TRIB. TO APPANOOSE CREEK	Kansas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	1941	35
MOSQUITO CREEK	Minnesota	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1937	35
NIOBRARA RIVER	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1916	35
S FK TURKEY CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
COON CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
SILVER CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	1935	35
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
E BR N FK ELKHORN RIVER	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1948	35
CANEY CREEK	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	1970	35
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
STREAM	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	35
S BR YELLOW MEDICINE R	Minnesota	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Good	1980	33
BROWN CREEK	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	1998	32
OLD ZION CREEK	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	1985	32
ROSEY BAYOU	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	1987	32
CLEAR FORK	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	2011	32
FALL CREEK	Idaho	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1987	30
BLACK WARRIOR CREEK	Idaho	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1975	30
ROCK LICK CREEK	Kentucky	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1993	30
DRAW	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1991	30
PAWNEE CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Good	1922	30
ELK CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1995	30
FARMERS/MERCHANTS CANAL	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	30
RICHLAND CREEK	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Fair	2016	30
Little Sandy Creek	Texas	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1990	30
CLEAR CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1920	30
WILLOW CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1915	30
N BR BIG BLUE RIVER	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1950	30
DOG CREEK	Nebraska	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1935	30
NEWBERRY CREEK	North Carolina	Scour Critical — Unaddressed	Poor	1953	30

Scour Critical Bridges by State

States ranked by number of scour critical bridges.

State	Scour Critical	Unaddressed	Countermeasures	Ineffective
Texas	3,912	75	516	3,321
Pennsylvania	2,233	45	2,187	1
Louisiana	1,302	13	1,288	1
South Carolina	1,263	0	1,217	46
Oregon	1,231	4	1,221	6
Michigan	1,081	14	1,062	5
Nebraska	962	224	732	6
New York	864	9	780	75
Indiana	756	7	749	0
Wisconsin	751	0	748	3
Kansas	638	9	626	3
California	623	27	562	34
Tennessee	581	12	569	0
Washington	516	14	487	15
Puerto Rico	496	9	487	0
Alabama	450	1	423	26
Iowa	392	3	385	4
New Jersey	362	2	360	0
Florida	357	4	339	14
Oklahoma	317	33	283	1
Missouri	312	4	307	1
Mississippi	301	6	286	9
Connecticut	279	0	276	3
Minnesota	257	38	202	17
Vermont	242	0	240	2
Colorado	241	3	238	0
Idaho	215	18	186	11
South Dakota	207	3	203	1
Arkansas	187	3	129	55
Massachusetts	166	15	106	45
Montana	166	13	140	13
Arizona	164	2	160	2
West Virginia	160	2	98	60
Alaska	159	1	146	12
Maine	140	13	126	1
North Carolina	130	9	105	16
New Mexico	127	4	114	9
North Dakota	102	14	87	1
Utah	100	6	82	12
Georgia	99	1	81	17
Illinois	99	3	85	11
Nevada	94	0	85	9
Rhode Island	94	0	93	1
New Hampshire	86	2	78	6
Hawaii	83	0	82	1
Kentucky	56	16	39	1
Maryland	54	1	51	2
Wyoming	51	1	48	2
Delaware	39	0	39	0
Ohio	12	2	4	6
Virginia	8	0	8	0
District of Columbia	5	0	4	1

Scour Critical Rating Codes

Code 2 — Unaddressed	Bridge is scour critical with no countermeasures installed. The foundation is vulnerable and no protective action has been taken.
Code 3 — Countermeasures Installed	Protective measures (riprap, sheet piling, etc.) have been installed to reduce scour risk, but the bridge remains classified as scour critical.
Code 6 — Countermeasures Ineffective	Protective measures were installed but have been assessed as ineffective. The bridge requires re-evaluation and additional action.

About Scour Critical Bridges

Scour critical bridges have been identified through underwater inspection or analysis as having foundations that are unstable or could become unstable during flood conditions. FHWA requires action plans for all scour critical bridges. Famous scour failures include the 1987 Schoharie Creek Bridge collapse in New York.

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