Lambley Viaduct
| Lambley Viaduct | |
| Northumberland | |
|---|---|
 Lambley Viaduct | |
| Location | |
| Carrying: | Cycle route and footpath |
| Crossing: | River South Tyne |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | NY675584 |
| Location: | 54°55’8"N, 2°30’31"W |
| Structure | |
| Length: | 853 feet |
| Material: | Stone |
| History | |
| Built 1852 | |
| Information | |
Lambley Viaduct is a stone bridge across the River South Tyne at Lambley in Northumberland, built to carry the Haltwhistle to Alston railway line over the dale of the River South Tyne.
The Viaduct is eight hundred and sixty feet long, crossing the South Tyne as a series of elegant stone arches.
The railway is closed, but the Lambley Viaduct is preserved as a heritage monument, remaining open to pedestrians though one end of the viaduct has been fenced off.
The viaduct is a Grade II listed structure.[1]
History
Lambley Viaduct was built to carry the Haltwhistle to Alston railway, which was opened in 1852 to haul coal and lead from the Alston mines
The viaduct was probably designed by George Barclay Bruce,[1] a Victorian engineer who was involved in the Alston line before leaving for India to pioneer railway construction there. It is a particularly elegant example of Victorian engineering: the river is crossed by nine arches each 56 feet wide which support a deck at least 108 feet above the river[1] but, as it carried a single rail track, only 11 feet wide. The piers to the arches are built of massive rough-faced stones each weighing up to 1,100 lb, with similar-sized stones in ashlar to the main arch voussoirs. The spandrels and piers to the 20-foot wide approach arches are built of coursed rubble masonry.[2]
The railway closed in 1976, and the viaduct was allowed to decay.[3] In 1991 the British Rail Property Board agreed to repair the viaduct and hand it over to the North Pennine Heritage Trust which would maintain it in the future; however the Trust went into administration in 2011.[4]
One end of the viaduct has been fenced off, after the path was diverted in 2004 to pass further away from Lambley railway station, which is now a private house.[2]
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Lambley Viaduct) |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 National Heritage List 1042918: Labey Viaduct (Grade II listing)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Lambley Viaduct". http://freespace.virgin.net/elaine.rigby/lambley.htm.
- ↑ "River South Tyne - Lambley Viaduct". Bridges on the Tyne. http://www.bridgesonthetyne.co.uk/lambrw.html.
- ↑ "North Pennines Heritage Trust collapses". Newcastle upon Tyne: Trinity Mirror. 2011-09-10. http://www.thejournal.co.uk/news/north-east-news/north-pennines-heritage-trust-collapses-4423229. "The trust, with 400 members and a team of volunteers, also owns Alston Arches and the Lambley Viaduct at Haltwhistle."
| Bridges and crossings on the River South Tyne | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parson Shields Bridge | Eals Bridge | Eals Footbridge | Lambley Viaduct | Lambley Footbridge | Diamond Oak Bridge | Featherstone Gauging Station |
