Eamont Bridge (structure)

Eamont Bridge

The bridge in August 2013
Coordinates 54°39′05″N 2°44′31″W / 54.651520°N 2.742000°W / 54.651520; -2.742000Coordinates: 54°39′05″N 2°44′31″W / 54.651520°N 2.742000°W / 54.651520; -2.742000
Carries A6 road
Crosses River Eamont
Locale Penrith, Cumbria, England
Heritage status
Designated 5 July 1926
Reference no. 1007193
Listed Building – Grade I
Designated 24 April 1951
6 February 1968
Reference no. 1145133
1145301
Characteristics
Material
Number of spans 3
History
Construction begin 15th century
Closed December 2015

Eamont Bridge is a road bridge over the River Eamont, at the village of the same name, immediately to the south of Penrith, Cumbria, England. It is a scheduled monument[1] and a grade I listed building (it has two listings as it spans a parish boundary and is listed under both).[2][3]

The narrow bridge lies on the A6 road and before the opening of the M6 motorway was a notorious bottleneck. It is still controlled by traffic lights.

The bridge crosses the old county boundary between Cumberland and Westmorland and is one of the oldest bridges in the county still in daily use. It was built in 1425 after the Bishop of Durham, Thomas Langley, offered indulgences to anyone contributing towards its construction, and was widened in 1875.[1] It is a slightly humpbacked three-arched bridge made of grey sandstone with alterations in red sandstone. The solid parapets include pedestrian refuges above the pillars. Like the village, the bridge stands partly in Yanwath and Eamont Bridge parish and partly in Penrith.[3]

In December 2015, the bridge was declared unsafe and closed to traffic, following severe flooding[4] caused by Storm Frank. The bridge sustained significant damage, with a one-metre hole reported in a supporting pillar.[5]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Eamont Bridge, Eamont Bridge.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/21/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.