Bridges in Manitoba are in better condition than roads compared with the national average. In fact, the average age of bridges in the province has followed a general downward trend from 1961 to the late 1990s. It then increased slightly to 23.2 years in 2005 and dropped to 22.4 years in 2007. This is far lower than in the 1960s, when age was in the 29-year range.
This placed the province under the national average and ranked it fourth among provinces in terms of the youngest infrastructure of this type. Bridges and overpasses in Manitoba tied with water supply systems as the second most important public infrastructure investment in the province, each accounting for 13% in 2007.
As a percentage of estimated useful life, the rate for this asset dropped below the national average in 1994. In 2007, bridges and overpasses in Manitoba had passed 52% of their estimated useful life, compared with a national average of 57%.