Kincardine Bridge

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Kincardine Bridge
Fife, Perthshire, Stirlingshire

The Kincardine Bridge on the River Forth
Location
Type: Swing bridge with mix of
secondary span structure types
Carrying: A985 road
Crossing: River Forth
Location
Location: 56°3’54"N, 3°43’38"W
Structure
Length: ½ mile
Main span: 120 yards
Type: Swing bridge with mix of
secondary span structure types
History
Built 1932-36
Architect: Sir Alexander Gibb & Partners[1]
Information
A map of the bridge and the surrounding river from 1945

The Kincardine Bridge is a road bridge crossing the Firth of Forth from Stirlingshire to Kincardine-on-Forth in Perthshire detached in Fife.

History

The bridge was constructed between 1932 and 1936, to a design by Sir Alexander Gibb & Partners, Consulting Engineers and Architect, Donald Watson. It was the first road crossing of the River Forth downstream of Stirling, completed nearly thirty years before the Forth Road Bridge, which stands fifteen miles to the south-east.

The bridge was constructed with a swinging central section which remained in use until 1988, that would allow larger ships to sail upstream to the small port at Alloa.

The bridge's no-longer-operable swing span, viewed from the new Clackmannanshire Bridge

The bridge is part of the A985 road (formerly A876), and carries a single lane in each direction. Until the opening of the Clackmannanshire Bridge in 2008, it was the customary diversion route for traffic north from Edinburgh and eastern Scotland when the Forth Road Bridge was closed or under repair. As a result of the additional traffic using the bridge at these times, joining the high volume of regular commuter traffic, the town of Kincardine was frequently congested.

Second bridge

The original bridge, at over 70 years old, was identified by the Scottish Executive as being in need of replacement. The new Clackmannanshire Bridge[2] was opened on 19 November 2008.[3] The original bridge was given Category A listed status by Historic Scotland and was closed temporarily for upgrading works in 2011.

With the opening of the new bridge, the Kincardine Bridge was re-numbered as part of the A985 while the new Clackmannanshire Bridge became part of the re-routed A876, forming the Kincardine bypass.

References

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about Kincardine Bridge)


Bridges and crossings on the River Forth
Forth Road Bridge Forth Bridge Firth of Forth