Blackfriars Railway Bridge
51°30′35″N 0°06′12″W / 51.50972°N 0.10333°W
Blackfriars Railway Bridge | |
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 The current Blackfriars Railway Bridge (on the left) and remains of the old bridge, viewed from the north bank of the Thames | |
| Coordinates | 51°30′35″N 0°06′12″W / 51.5097°N 0.1033°W |
| Carries | Holborn Viaduct–Herne Hill line |
| Crosses | River Thames |
| Locale | London |
| Maintained by | Network Rail |
| Preceded by | Blackfriars Bridge |
| Followed by | Millennium Bridge |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Arch |
| History | |
| Opened | 1886 |
| Location | |
 | |
First bridge
There have been two structures with the name. The first bridge was opened in 1864 and was designed by
At the southern end of the bridge was
Second bridge
The second bridge, built slightly further downstream (to the east), was originally called St Paul's Railway Bridge and opened in 1886 together with a new station in Queen Victoria Street called St Paul's Station.
The need for the second bridge was the lack of capacity and overcrowding at the first station which had become "in the highest degree dangerous".[5] The directors of the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway determined that they needed to double the lines across the Thames.[5]
The original design was for four rail lines but once work was underway it was decided to expand the bridge to carry seven lines of railway which required extensions to the four piers.[6] The bridge had a clear width of 81ft between the parapets, increasing to 123ft at the northernmost span to provide space for the platforms. The bridge had five spans, the shore span on the Surrey side being 183ft, the centre span and Middlesex shore span 185ft each, and the second and fourth spans 175ft each. The lengths of the three middle spans corresponded with those of the old bridge alongside for ease of navigation.[3]
When St Paul's railway station changed its name to Blackfriars in 1937 the name of the bridge was changed as well to Blackfriars Railway Bridge.
As part of the
See also
References
- ^ Blackfriars: Loughborough Junction
- ^ Historic England. "Southern abutment to former West Blackfriars and St Paul's Rail Bridge (1376596)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 November 2008.
- ^ a b c Cruttwell, George Edward Wilson (21 March 1890). "The new bridge of the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway Company over the Thames at Blackfriars". The Engineer: 237.
- ^ Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide
- ^ a b "New Railway Bridge at Blackfriars". The Daily News. 29 December 1883.
- ^ "The New Bridge at Blackfriars". The Daily News. 20 September 1884.
- ^ "Work starts on solar bridge at Blackfriars station". The Guardian. 4 October 2011. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
External links
Bridges of Central London (west to east) | ||
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