HARRISBURG, DAUPHIN CO. (WOLF) — An analysis by FOX56 of bridge-condition reports from 18 NEPA counties shows nearly 800 bridges across Northeastern Pennsylvania are rated in poor condition, including structures that carry tens of thousands of vehicles each day. Condition, traffic, age and restriction information are included in the reports by county level.

The analysis found that 796 of the 6,813 bridges in the 18 counties are rated poor — about 11.7 percent, or nearly one in every nine bridges.

A bridge rated “poor” is not necessarily in danger of collapse. That means at least one major component (deck, superstructure or substructure) has degraded to a level of 4 or less on the federal inspection scale and could need significant rehabilitation or replacement.

The percentage of poor bridges varies considerably throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Where are the poorest bridges?

There is a wide variation in the share of poor bridges within the region.

Wayne County has the highest percentage of bridges rated poor at 21.8 percent, with 84 of its 386 bridges rated poor.

Schuylkill County is next with 106 of 499 bridges rated poor, or 21.2%.

Carbon County has 33 poor bridges, or 19.9 percent, out of 166. Susquehanna County is next with 17.6 percent and Pike County has 17.3 percent.

Luzerne County has the highest total number of poor bridges, with 115 out of 695 of its bridges rated poor. That’s 16.5 percent of every bridge in the county.

There are 71 poor bridges, or 16.2%, in Monroe County. Wyoming County has 33, or 14.5%.

At the other end of the list is Union County with 7 poor bridges out of 241 or 2.9 percent.

Bad bridges for some heavy traffic

But not all of the region’s poorly rated bridges are small rural bridges.

The most heavily trafficked poor bridge in the analysis is a bridge over Forge Road and the D&L Railroad on Interstate 80 in East Stroudsburg, carrying an estimated 51,995 vehicles per day. The bridge was built in 1958 and is listed as open with no restrictions.

In Luzerne County, two Cross Valley Expressway/Route 309 bridges over Toby Creek each carry about 34,519 vehicles a day. Both were built in 1963 and are open-listed with no restrictions.

In Northampton County, a westbound I-78 bridge over Easton Road is rated poor and carries about 31,597 vehicles daily. An eastbound I-78 bridge over South Mountain Drive carries about 31,053 vehicles daily.

One Route 309 bridge over Toby’s Creek in Kingston Township carries about 30,799 vehicles a day. That bridge was constructed in 1928.

Other heavily used poor bridges include I-81 structures in Ashley Boro with about 27,000 and 25,800 vehicles a day, a Route 6/11 bridge over Leggetts Creek in Clarks Summit with about 24,752 vehicles a day, and a U.S. 209 bridge in Monroe County with about 21,812 vehicles a day.

The Route 61 bridge over Darkwater Creek in Schuylkill County carries an average daily traffic volume of 21,222 vehicles.

Although their ratings are poor, all those bridges are listed as open without a current traffic restriction in the reports.

Some are over 100 years old

The reports also show the age of some of the region’s bridge infrastructure.

The oldest poor bridge in the analysis is a Cedar Drive bridge over Indian Creek in Lehigh Township, Northampton County, built in 1826. It is posted to load.

A bridge over Route 6 in the Boro of Factoryville, Wyoming County, dates from 1849. It continues to be open with no restrictions and carries about 11,260 vehicles per day.

A bridge on Route 4012 over Loyalsock Creek in Sullivan County, posted for load, 1850.

Other poor bridges in the region date to the 1850s and 1860s, including an 1855 bridge over Penns Creek in Union County and an 1856 span in Monroe County.

Some of the oldest bridges are shut. A Pike County bridge on Broad Street over Vandermark Creek is from 1867 and is closed to all traffic.

Closures and restrictions

The analysis identified 796 poor bridges, of which 438 are listed as open no restriction.

Another 272 are awaiting loading and 69 are closed to all traffic.

The reports also discuss bridges with other load capacity limitations, temporary conditions, and posting recommendations.

That means nearly 44 percent of the region’s poor bridges have some kind of posting, closure or other restriction.

What the numbers reveal

The data indicate that bridge conditions are not uniform throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Some counties have a poor rating on more than 20% of their bridges and others less than 5%.

Data also shows that poorly-conditioned bridges are not just on lightly-traveled back roads. Several are along major interstate and state routes with tens of thousands of vehicles daily.

And while a poor rating does not automatically mean a bridge is unsafe, the number of structures needing significant maintenance, rehabilitation or replacement points to the scale of the region’s bridge infrastructure needs.

The numbers in this analysis come from the 18 county bridge condition reports that were provided to FOX56,