Swing Bridge, Stanley Dock, Liverpool
The 1894 illustration shows the original swing bridge in the foreground, and the double-decker opening railway bridge behind, crossing the channel between Stanley Dock and Collingwood Dock.
The railway bridge was unusual, perhaps unique. It was a double decker, the top deck carrying the Liverpool Overhead Railway, while the lower deck carried the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board railway. The bridge was divided in the middle, and both halves pivoted on the land ends to allow tall vessels to pass. For smaller vessels, which constituted the majority of traffic, the lower deck central portions could be raised through 35 degrees, without affecting Overhead Railway traffic.[1]
The railway bridge was described and illustrated in Engineering 1891/12/25. The designer was F. Huddleston.
Neither bridge has survived. The road bridge was replaced by the Stanley Dock Lifting Bridge.
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑ 'The Docker's Umbrella - A History of Liverpool Overhead Railway' by Paul Bolger, The Blucoat Press, 1992