| Coordinates | 56.392°N 3.4238°W |
|---|---|
| Carries | Scottish Central Railway |
| Crosses | River Tay |
| Locale | Perth and Kinross |
| Other name | West Railway Bridge |
| Material | Iron and stone |
| Length | 440 metres (1,440 ft) |
| Designer | Benjamin Hall Blyth · Francis Freeman & Lee |
| Opened | 1864 (age 162) |
The Tay Viaduct, also known as the West Railway Bridge, is a single-track railway viaduct in Perth, Perth and Kinross, Scotland.[1] It is around 440 m (1,440 ft) long.[2] It carries the Scottish Central Railway, via a pronounced curve, across the River Tay to and from Perth railway station, 0.5 mi (800 m) to the west. Built in 1864, the work of London's Francis Freeman & Lee,[3] it replaced an earlier double-track timber viaduct dating from 1849.[4] The first pier of today's structure is for a double track, but the line is now single.[citation needed]
The viaduct has seven iron girder spans on the city side of the river, ten stone arches on Moncreiffe Island, and six iron girder spans to the east of Moncreiffe Island.[2] The earlier bridge had 25 arches and an iron swing bridge.
The bridge has two spans across the Tay from Perth: the first is to Moncreiffe Island; the second is from Moncreiffe Island to Barnhill on the river's eastern banks.
It has a pedestrian walkway on the outer edge of its curve. The curve is less severe than its predecessor's was. The current structure has seventeen chains.[2]
See also
References
- ^ Perth, West Railway Bridge Archived 21 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine – Canmore
- ^ Tay Railway Viaduct (Perth) Archived 21 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine – Perth City Tours
- ^ The Artizan, Volume 5 (1847), p. 183
- ^ David Ross, The Caledonian: Scotland's Imperial Railway: A History, Stenlake Publishing Limited, Catrine, 2014, ISBN 978 1840 335842
External links
- Tay Viaduct – RailScot