Home › Iowa › Buena Vista County

Bridge conditions in Buena Vista County, Iowa

157 inventoried bridges · 54 rated poor · 2025 National Bridge Inventory

United States Bridge Conditions2025 National Bridge Inventory, FHWACompiled August 20, 2026

About one in 3 bridges in Buena Vista County is rated in poor condition: 54 of 157 on the federal inventory, one of the higher shares in Iowa.

54 of the 157 bridges in Buena Vista County, Iowa, are rated in poor condition (34.4%) in the 2025 National Bridge Inventory, as of August 20, 2026.
56 bridges (35.7%) are rated good and 47 (29.9%) fair.
The median Buena Vista County bridge was built in 1978.
The busiest poor-rated bridge is FM over Raccoon River (built 1976), carrying about 1,228 vehicles a day.

Good 35.7% · Fair 29.9% · Poor 34.4% of 157 bridges

Bridges rated poor

Every bridge in the county with a poor rating, busiest first. Poor means a major component is rated 4 or lower on FHWA's 0-9 scale; it is a repair flag, not a closure notice.

Bridge	Built	Vehicles/day	Condition
FM over Raccoon River	1976	1,228	Poor
FM over Sm Stream	1974	569	Poor
FM over Little Maple River	1974	569	Poor
FM over Brooks Creek	1966	509	Poor
FM over Dd 34 Lat #2	1979	489	Poor
FM over Creek	1970	469	Poor
FM over Maple River	1964	450	Poor
FM over Small	1978	390	Poor
FM over Creek	1964	339	Poor
FM over Creek	1976	249	Poor
FM over Branch Little Sioux Rvr	1967	120	Poor
Local over Drainage Ditch	1971	100	Poor
FM over Brooks Creek	1974	100	Poor
FM over Prairie Creek D D #1	1978	90	Poor
FM over Stream	1973	60	Poor
Local over Creek	1969	50	Poor
Local over Drainage Ditch	1977	50	Poor
Local over Creek	1976	45	Poor
Local over Branch Raccoon River	1970	45	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1976	45	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1917	40	Poor
Local over Raccoon River	1933	34	Poor
Local over D D #106	1978	34	Poor
Local over Drainage Ditch	1971	34	Poor
Local over Boyer Creek	1978	30	Poor
Local over Drainage Ditch	1971	30	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1977	30	Poor
Local over Branch of Maple	1978	30	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1930	30	Poor
Local over Brooks Creek	1918	30	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1971	30	Poor
Local over Br Little Sioux River	1971	30	Poor
Local over Drainage Ditch	1973	30	Poor
Local over Raccoon River	1914	26	Poor
FM over Br Little Sioux River	1960	26	Poor
Local over Stream	1975	20	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1923	20	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1925	20	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1971	20	Poor
520TH St over Br Raccoon River	1931	20	Poor
Local over Raccoon River	1977	20	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1920	20	Poor
Local over Br Little Sioux River	1922	20	Poor
Local over Stream	1973	20	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1972	15	Poor
Local over Creek	1972	15	Poor
Local over Maple River	1914	15	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1977	15	Poor
Local over Stream	1915	15	Poor
Local over Br Raccoon River	1928	11	Poor
Local over Brooks Creek	1924	11	Poor
Local over Stream	1900	11	Poor
Local over Br Little Sioux River	1921	11	Poor
Local over Stream	1973	5	Poor

Busiest bridges in the county

Bridge	Built	Vehicles/day	Condition
Ia 110 over Storm Lake Inlet	1978	4,890	Good
Ia 7 over Powell Creek	1992	4,720	Fair
US 71 & Ia 10 over Little Sioux River	1973	4,570	Fair
US 71 over Drainage Ditch #34	1985	3,830	Good
US 71 over Drainage Ditch #34	1985	3,830	Fair
US 71 over Branch Raccoon River	1996	3,000	Fair
US 71 over Stream	1996	3,000	Good
Ia 7 over Stream	1936	2,530	Fair
M44 105TH Ave over Poor Farm Creek	2017	2,414	Good
Ia 7 over Drainage Ditch	1937	2,050	Fair

Source: FHWA National Bridge Inventory, 2025. Counts cover inventoried highway bridges over 20 feet; ratings are reported by the state DOT.

Every bridge in Buena Vista County → - all 157, busiest first, each with its own condition record.

All of Iowa: Iowa bridge conditions by county · every download on the data page.

Background: how bridge ratings work · what "poor" and "structurally deficient" actually mean · how often bridges are inspected.