Silver Jubilee Bridge
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Inbound to Liverpool John Lennon Airport |
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| Carries | road traffic and pedestrians |
|---|---|
| Crosses | The River Mersey at Runcorn Gap |
| Locale | connects Runcorn and Widnes |
| Maintained by | Halton Borough Council |
| Design | compression arch suspended-deck bridge |
| Longest span | 330 meters |
| Opening date | 1961 |
The Silver Jubilee Bridge is a compression arch suspended-deck bridge bridge built in 1961 between Runcorn (originally in Cheshire) and Widnes (originally in Lancashire), both now part of Halton. The A533 crosses the bridge and suffers heavily from congestion at peak hours especially when there are roadworks.
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[edit] History
Ferry crossings have been recorded at this spot as early as the 12th Century.
Work on this bridge started in 1954 and in 1961 it was opened to the public by Princess Alexandra of Kent. The bridge was designed by Mott, Hay and Anderson and built by Dorman Long.
The original construction was a two lane road traffic bridge built to replace the Runcorn Widnes Transporter Bridge.
In 1975 the bridge was widened to four lanes to cope with increased traffic demands.
In 1977 the bridge was renamed from the Runcorn Widnes Bridge to the Silver Jubilee Bridge in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee.
[edit] Location
The bridge spans the Runcorn Gap which is a narrowing of the River Mersey and links the towns of Runcorn and Widnes.
The bridge is the first over road crossing of the Mersey. There are two toll tunnels closer to Liverpool. The bridge however is free to cross.
In the past, this bridge was never known solely as 'Runcorn Bridge' except by those who were mis-informed. However, 'Runcorn Bridge', over time, has come into common usage, especially by residents on the Widnes side.
[edit] Construction
The 'Silver Jubilee Bridge' is built from approximately 6,000 tonnes of steel but in combination with all the other building materials including the vehicle deck and the approach viaducts its total weight approaches 10,000 tonnes. At the time of its construction it cost nearly £3m to build.
The bridge is one of the largest of its kind worldwide with a main span of 330m and its crown being approximately 86m above sea level. It is the largest bridge of its type in the United Kingdom and its proportions are approximately 2/3rds the size of the world renowned Sydney Harbour Bridge.
The bridge is lime green in colour and is continually being painted. It takes on average five years to paint, end to end. To fully repaint the bridge from scratch would use anything up to 50,000 litres of paint.
[edit] Future Crossings
It has been mooted that the bridge may itself become a toll bridge if a larger proposed crossing, the Mersey Gateway, up-river near Fiddler's Ferry comes to fruition.
The local council, Halton Borough Council, have after many years of study and constulation now been given permission to build a new crossing. Funding for the Mersey Gateway of up to £209m will come from the government with the rest being sourced from the private sector.
[edit] Popular Culture
The bridge features heavily in two popular T.V. series, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps and Merseybeat (TV Series).
[edit] Further Reading
- The Bridging of Runcorn Gap, Halton Borough Council, 1978
- Starkey, H. F. Old Runcorn, Halton Borough Council, 1990.
- Thompson, Dave. Bridging the Mersey: A Pictorial History, European Library, Zaltbommel, 2000.
- Thompson, Dave. Bridging Us Together: The Story of Runcorn-Widnes Bridge, Dave Thompson, 2001.
