Scotswood Railway Bridge

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Scotswood Railway Bridge
Scotswood Railway Bridge carrying a Newcastle to Carlisle in 1982.
Carries	Water mains Gas mains formerly Railway
Crosses	River Tyne
Locale	Tyne and Wear, England
Design	Hog-back bridge
Total length	212.6 m (698 ft)
Width	7.7 m (25 ft)
Completion date	1871
Opening date	1871

The Scotswood Railway Bridge is a disused rail bridge crossing the River Tyne in North East England linking Scotswood and Blaydon.

[edit] History

The first railway bridge across the River Tyne at this location was a timber bridge completed in 1839. This was damaged by fire in 1860. A wooden replacement opened in 1861 which was then replaced by a temporary single track bridge in 1865, until the present bridge was built carrying double tracks of railway.

[edit] The current bridge

The new bridge was built for the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway and opened in 1871, with strengthening in 1943. It is the fourth railway bridge on the site. It is a six-span wrought-iron hog-back bridge on five cast-iron cylinder piers. It was set at an angle to the river so that trains could approach the bridge at speed, there being no sharp curve onto the bridge. It was taken out of use in 1982 when the trains were re-routed across the King Edward VII Bridge and through Dunston. It still carries water and gas mains but the railway tracks have been removed and it is no longer possible to cross safely.