Tees Newport Bridge

The Tees Newport Bridge is a vertical-lift bridge spanning the River Tees a short distance upriver from Tees Transporter Bridge, linking Middlesbrough with the borough of Stockton-on-Tees, in the northeast of England; it was completed in 1934. It no longer lifts, but still acts as a road bridge in its permanently down position.

For the transporter bridge in Newport, Wales, see Newport Transporter Bridge.

Tees Newport Bridge
Tees Newport Bridge
Coordinates54°34′18.73″N 1°15′40.9″W
CarriesMotor vehicles, A1032 road
CrossesRiver Tees and railway line
LocaleMiddlesbrough, England
Official nameTees Newport Bridge
Preceded byTees Viaduct
Followed byTees Transporter Bridge
Characteristics
Designvertical lift
Materialsteel, concrete
Longest span82 m (269 ft)
No. of spans9
Piers in water2
History
DesignerMott, Hay and Anderson
Opened28 February 1934

History

Designed by Mott, Hay and Anderson and built by local company Dorman Long,[1] who have also been responsible for such structures as the Tyne Bridge and Sydney Harbour Bridge, it was the first large vertical-lift bridge in Britain.[2]

The bridge was inaugurated by Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI) and opened to traffic on 28 February 1934.[3] Constructed around twin 55 m (180 ft) lifting towers, the 82 m (269 ft) bridge span, weighing 2,700 tonnes, could be lifted by the use of two 325 H.P. electric motors at 16 m (52 ft) per minute to a maximum height of 37 m (121 ft). In the event of motor failure a standby 450 H.P. petrol engine could be employed to move the bridge, but should both systems fail it was possible to raise or lower the span manually using a winch mechanism. It was estimated in 1963 by Mr R. Batty, long time Bridge Master at Newport Bridge, that "it would take 12 men eight hours" to complete the movement by hand.

Originally, 12 men would have been employed to man the bridge around the clock, usually requiring four to drive it at any one time. This was accomplished from the oak-panelled winding house situated midway along the bridge span. During the 1940s and early 1950s this would occur up to twice a day with an average of 800 vessels per year passing under it, despite staffing difficulties during the 1940s when men were away fighting.[3] However, as the number of ships needing to sail up to Stockton-on-Tees declined, so did the usage of the bridge.

Tees Newport Bridge from the Stockton-on-Tees side

The legal requirement to lift the bridge for shipping traffic was removed in 1989 after the repeal of a Parliamentary Act. Before mechanical decommissioning Mr Ian MacDonald, who worked on the bridge from 1966, finally as Bridge Master, supervised the final lift on 18 November 1990.

The Tees Newport Bridge still serves as a road bridge, carrying considerable traffic as a section of the A1032, despite the presence of the A19 Tees Viaduct a short distance upriver. In recent years it was repainted in its original green and some minor maintenance took place on the wire ropes and counterbalances which still take the majority of the bridge load. In 1988 the bridge was given Grade II Listed Building status.[4][5]

Work started in July 2014 to paint the bridge red and silver to mark its 80th anniversary.[6] The work was originally planned to take 6 weeks, but was completed behind schedule and over-budget in October 2015. The main cause for the delay was that the bridge had not been maintained by Stockton Council for 15 years, and much of the steelwork was in a poor condition.

See also
  • List of bridges in England for other notable bridges

References
  1. Richards, James M. (1984). The National Trust Book of Bridges. Butler & Tanner Ltd. p. 177.
  2. Rennison, R.W. (1996). Civil Engineering Heritage: Northern England. Thomas Telford Publishing. p. 91.
  3. Woodhouse, Robert (2009). Tees Valley Curiosities. Stroud, Gloucestershire: The History Press. p. 85. ISBN 978-0750950770.
  4. Historic England. "Newport Bridge (1139837)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  5. "Newport Bridge, Middlesbrough". British Listed Buildings. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  6. Guillot, Toni (30 May 2014). "Newport Bridge to be painted red and silver for 80th anniversary". Gazette Live. Archived from the original on 3 June 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
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