Dallas Drives Daily In Structurally Deficient Bridges; Dallas, TX | Image by travelview/Shutterstock
In the heart of Texas’ rapidly expanding concrete jungle, Dallas is not bridging the gaps when it comes to bridge safety.
The most recent Federal Highway Administration’s National Bridge Inventory data paints a concerning picture: out of nearly 57,000 bridges statewide, 680 – or around 1.2% – are labeled as “structurally deficient,” meaning key construction elements like bridge decks (basically how much road surface the bridge provides), or their substructures are in “poor or worse” condition.
While this affects just 1.2% of the total bridge “deck areas” across the state, the concentration of these problematic bridges in high-traffic areas across Dallas raises eyebrows.
Dallas County dominates the list of Texas’ most used structurally deficient bridges.
Leading the pack is the Interstate 35E bridge over Oak Lawn Avenue and Turtle Creek, built in 1959, which sees around 194,000 daily crossings. Close behind is the IH 45 northbound connector over IH 30 from 1961, also carrying around 194,000 cars daily.
Other high-risk Dallas spans include IH 635 (1969, 182,015 crossings), IH 35E northbound connector over DART and DNT (1995, 141,993 crossings), IH 45 over Miller Ferry Road (1954, 95,059 crossings), IH 345 over IH 30 (both 1971, each with 90,190 crossings), IH 30 westbound main lanes over IH 635 (1971, 81, 504 crossings), and even a few segments of IH 635 that pass over active railroads (1967, each around 76,110 crossings).
Of the state’s “urban interstate” bridges (3,591 total), 27 are deficient and handle over 2.1 million daily crossings. “Urban freeways” in the data report add another 13 deficient bridges with around 279,000 crossings.
Statewide, the bridge inventory report shows that 10,621 bridges still need repairs as of June 2025, with estimated costs totaling over $7.1 billion. This includes around 2,500 replacements at $1.4 billion, 576 bridge “rehabilitations” at $310 million, and other structural work for 7,448 bridges, totaling an estimated $5.3 billion.
Altogether, these numbers reflect bridges carrying over 87 million trips every day.
Although the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act has allocated $576.8 million for bridge improvements in Texas (with $461.4 million available and $300.7 million already committed to 301 projects as of June 2025), the condition of many bridges still calls for some quick fixes to avoid serious disruptions – or something catastrophically worse.
Upcoming Bridge Repairs Near Dallas
The good news for Dallas-area drivers is that several key bridge projects are underway or set to begin in 2026 to address aging spans.
TxDOT and partners are replacing or upgrading high-priority bridge structures – including work on US 175 at Lake June Road, multiple I-30 and loop bridges, the new DFW Airport Terminal B access bridge, the Trinity Strand Trail Hi-Line span (on track for 2026 finish), as well as the Highland Park dam/bridge reconstruction (set to begin this month and run about two years).