AUSTIN—Texas has fixed only one of the 20 most heavily traveled bridges defined as structurally deficient a year after the deadly collapse of a Minnesota overpass with the same label prompted calls for greater bridge safety, according to an analysis by The Associated Press.

Work has been started on two others.

But no repairs have been initiated on 17 of the state’s 20 busiest deficient bridges, which bear more than 1.2 million vehicles a day. State officials contend that the bridges are safe for travelers.

But according to scores released by the Texas Department of Transportation last year, shortly after the Minnesota tragedy, some of the bridges in question fared much lower than others.

In Dallas, for instance, the northbound Interstate 35 bridge over the Trinity River and Brazos Street received a score of 46 out of 100, with one being the lowest for structural adequacy and safety for public use. A score of 80 or lower qualifies the structure for federal highway funds.

“The term structurally deficient means that a bridge cannot carry the load for which it was originally designed,” said transportation agency spokesman Chris Lippincott. “In other words it has too much traffic and has experienced some deterioration, which makes it eligible for federal funding.”

Of the 2,024 Texas bridges that were deemed structurally deficient a year ago, 153 have been upgraded, Lippincott said.

“The efforts undertaken by the Texas Department of Transportation to rehabilitate and maintain the state’s 50,000-plus bridges are obviously constrained by financial realities, but safety is always at the top of our minds,” he said.

“We will repair the bridges with the greatest need as quickly as we can. Other bridges may require more aggressive maintenance due to their age or due to a high-traffic volume and we understand that.”

The one heavily traveled bridge that has been fixed in the last year, in Jefferson County, had a score of 49.8.

Eight of the top 20 bridges are in the Fort Worth area, with scores ranging from 60 to 88.

After the Minnesota disaster, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst ordered the transportation department to compile a list of the 2,024 structurally deficient bridges in Texas and their maintenance and repair status.

In ordering the list, Dewhurst cast doubt on assertions that Texas bridges are safe and demanded details about deficient bridges.

“I read with relief your statement that ’all of the bridges on Texas public roads are safe,”’ Dewhurst wrote. “But the Minnesota highway department, I assume, thought that was true for their state, too.”

The Legislature has not met since the report was released, but Dewhurst asked a committee to review the status of bridge safety in Texas and make recommendations for when lawmakers reconvene in January.

Dewhurst said Wednesday that he ordered the transportation department last fall to “get any unsafe bridges fixed.”