Border Counties Bridge

Border Counties Bridge
Border Counties Bridge
Coordinates	54°58′59″N 2°07′19″W / 54.983°N 2.122°WCoordinates: 54°58′59″N 2°07′19″W / 54.983°N 2.122°W
OS grid reference	NY922653
Carries	Rail (disused)
Crosses	River Tyne
Locale	Northumberland, England
Characteristics
Design	beam[1]
Material	iron[1]
Number of spans	five
Piers in water	4 piers of masonry/concrete[1]
History
Construction end	1856[1]
Closed	1956
Border Counties Bridge Location in Northumberland

Border Counties Railway
Locale Roxburghshire, Scotland; Northumberland, England Dates of operation 31 July 1854 – 13 August 1860 Successor North British Railway Track gauge 4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Legend
Waverley Route Riccarton Junction   Waverley Route Saughtree Scotland England Deadwater Kielder Lewiefield Halt Plashetts   Plashetts Colliery Waggonway Falstone Thorneyburn Tarset Charlton Bellingham, later Bellingham (North Tyne)   Wansbeck Railway Reedsmouth Countess Park (1859-1861) Wark Barrasford Chollerton Chollerford (renamed Humshaugh in 1919) Wall   Newcastle and Carlisle Railway Border Counties Bridge Border Counties Junction Hexham   Newcastle and Carlisle Railway

Border Counties Bridge was a 19th-century railway bridge across the River Tyne just west of Hexham, Northumberland, England. The bridge used to carry the Border Counties Railway over the River Tyne at Border Counties Junction with the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway.

History

The Border Counties Railway was authorised by Parliament in 1854.^[1] The bridge was part of that railway and linked the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway, near Hexham, with the Border Union Railway at Riccarton Junction. The first section of the route was opened between Hexham and Chollerford in 1858, the remainder opening in 1862.^[2] The bridge was beset with problems from its construction when the temporary wooden structure erected initially to allow a crane access, was swept away by floods. The abutments at the south end had to be moved eastwards to avoid scouring of the river at its original site. Both weight and speed restrictions have always been a feature of the bridge. The bridge was reportedly damaged by floods in August 1948 and was given temporary repairs sufficient to keep the line open for a time. The condition of the bridge was a major factor in the eventual closure of the line, the cost of repairs being considered prohibitive. Regular passenger trains ceased on 13 October 1956 although the line (and the bridge) remained open for goods until 1 September 1958. Today, the stumps of the piers are still to be seen in the river.^[1]

References

1. "Bridges on the Tyne". Retrieved 2009-05-30.
2. Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-8526-0049-7. OCLC 19514063.

External links