4 Kingston Bridge - 1970Engineer: W.A.Fairhurst & PartnersIn 1967 work began on the KingstonBridge which was the second longestspanning pre-stressed concrete bridgein Britain. It was opened in 1970 by theQueen Mother and continues to carrytraffic on what is, at peak hours, one ofthe busiest sections of road in Europe.The bridge has recently undergone aprogramme of strengthening work toimprove load carrying capacity. Thisentailed jacking the bridge up and movingthe entire 52,000 tonne structure 50 mmto the south.

5 Proposed IFSD TradestonFootbridge - 2008Engineer: HalcrowThis footbridge is scheduled to becompleted in late 2008. It links thesuccessful International Financial ServicesDistrict (IFSD) with newly developingTradeston area on the south bank.

It is a balanced cantilever design primarilyin steel with a 48 metre main span andtwo 25 metre side spans. The steel finsform the main structural support functionand by placing these elements abovedeck, the deck’s structural thickness canbe reduced while the visual interest ofthe structure is enhanced. The pierscomprise precast concrete shells infilledwith concrete and are supported ontubular steel piles founded on rock.

The double curved alignment of the bridgemakes the river crossing more interesting,while the extra length this provides allowsthe necessary clearance over thenavigation channel to be achieved withoutthe gradient on the bridge being too steep.

6 George the Fifth Bridge -1928Engineer: Considère Constructions LtdGeorge the Fifth Bridge had been plannedto be built at the foot of Oswald Street in1914 but war delayed construction for 10years and it finally opened in 1928.Although the bridge appears to be a threespan masonry arch bridge, it is in thisrespect a fraud. The granite masonry isfacing to a three span reinforced concretebox girder construction. Each pier isfounded on four cylindrical concretecaissons. These were floated into positionand settled onto the river bed on the ebbtide. The caissons were then sunk to theirfinal positions by removing their temporarybottoms and excavating down to a solidfoundation beneath the river bed.

7 2nd Caledonian RailwayBridge - 1905Engineer: Donald A.Matheson & SirJohn Wolfe BarryThe Caledonian Railway Company waskeen to develop, and in 1905 the ‘NewClyde Viaduct’ was opened alongside thefirst bridge, giving a total of 13 tracks intoCentral Station. At one time it was thewidest railway-over-river-bridge in thecountry. Steel lattice girders, spanningup to 59m sit on granite piers founded atdepth on rectangular steel caissons. Thebridge cost £200,000 with a further£75,000 being paid in compensation tothe Clyde Trustees. Before opening it wasload tested with 19 locomotives.

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The oldest surviving Clyde Bridges werebuilt in the 1850’s. By then Britain hadbecome the workshop of the world. In1851 Britain smelted 2.5 million tons ofiron; five times as much as the USA andten times as much as Germany. In 1851British steam engines could produce 1.2million horsepower; more than the restof Europe put together. Britain ownedhalf of the world’s ocean-going shipsand contained half of the world’s railwaymileage. This huge economic supremacywas celebrated in the Great Exhibitionof 1851 in London’s Crystal Palace.

In the 1850’s Glasgow was entering a periodwhen it would quadruple its population in70 years, and when shipbuilding and heavyengineering would flourish. The lower Clydewas about to be transformed into a navigablechannel capable of receiving ocean-goingvessels into Glasgow, which would becomeone of the world’s great ports.

SETTING THE SCENE

1 Millennium Bridge - 2002Engineer: M G Bennett AssociatesFunded by the Heritage Lottery Fund thebridge was built by the Glasgow ScienceCentre to further improve links betweenthe north bank and the GSC. It comprisesfive spans, four of which are fixed and thecentre span comprising twin hydraulicallypowered lifting leaves to allow the passageof vessels. The bridge is made of latticetrusses of triangular section with a singlebottom boom member and are fabricatedfrom steel hollow sections. The main spanis 38metres and the side spans are 26, 27,27 and 8 metres. The centre span hasbeen designed to be made fixed if requiredin the future. The bridge is supported onfully piled foundations to bedrock. Thebridge only requires the same amount ofpower to open as is required to light a 100Watt lamp.

G L A S G O W ’ S C L Y D E B R I D G E S

G L A S G O W ’ S C L Y D E B R I D G E S

8 1st Caledonian RailwayBridge - 1878Engineer: Blyth & CunninghamWhile the City of Glasgow Union Railwayhad bridged the Clyde and had itsterminus on the north side (to becomeSt Enoch Station) in 1876, the CaledonianRailway Company stopped at BridgeStreet on the south side. Finally, in 1878,after paying £95,000 in compensation tothe Clyde Trustees, the first CaledonianRailway bridge in the centre of Glasgowwas built just downstream of GlasgowBridge.

The bridge deck, which carried four tracks,was of wrought iron constructionsupported on Dalbeattie granite piersfounded on cast iron cylinders sunk intothe river bed. Only the granite piers of thisbridge remain visible, the tracks and girdershaving been removed in 1966 - 1967.

9 Glasgow Bridge - 1899Engineer: Blyth & WestlandThis bridge stands at the foot of JamaicaStreet, on the site of an earlier GlasgowBridge which was designed by the Scottishengineer Thomas Telford, first presidentof the Institution of Civil Engineers. Thedesire for a wider crossing, the deepeningof the river by intermittent dredging, andthe removal of the weir above Albert Bridgein 1880, all conspired against the old bridgeand in 1899, after many schemes had beenconsidered, a replacement bridge wasbuilt. By popular demand, this seven spanmasonry arch, was designed as a replicaof Telford’s bridge, although 6m wider andfounded on steel caissons up to 30m deep.

10 South Portland StreetSuspension Bridge - 1853Engineer: George MartinThis bridge was begun in 1851 andsuffered a set-back during itsconstruction. After the masonry towershad been completed and the mainsuspension chains erected, the southtower split from top to bottom. The Greektriumphal arch towers now seen in thebridge were the result of a substantialre-build.

In 1870 the bridge closed for extensiverepairs. The chains and deck werecompletely removed; the wrought ironbars forming the chains were re-headedand additional bars provided, the timberdeck was replaced by wrought ironframework, and the deck profile waslowered by about 2m. The deck andhangers were again substantially renewedin 1926, and the hangers replaced oncemore in 2004. However, the masonrytowers remain as originally built in 1853,and are therefore the oldest survivingelements in Glasgow’s Clyde bridges.

11 Victoria Bridge - 1854Engineer: James WalkerGlasgow’s oldest surviving complete Clydebridge is Victoria Bridge, lying at the footof Stockwell Street. Bishop’s Bridge, its500 year old predecessor on the samesite, had become too restrictive for thegrowing demands of traffic; by 1851Glasgow’s population had risen to 329,000having doubled in the previous 25 years.A new 18m wide five span masonry archbridge was designed, with foundations6m below those of the old bridge, andtimber piles which were steam-driven afurther 4m below that. When the bridgeopened in 1854, Glasgow had the twowidest bridges in Britain - London’s widestat that time was only 16m.

Victoria Bridge is built on the site of thefirst recorded bridge over the Clyde; atimber bridge believed to exist in 1285and described as “Glaskow bryg, thatbyggyt was of tre” in Henry the Minstrel’sepic poem on Sir William Wallace.

3 Clyde Arc - 2006Engineer: HalcrowThe bridge was completed in 2006 andis unusual in that it crosses the river ona significantly skewed alignment whichwas dictated by the availability of suitablelanding points on the south side. Themain tied bowstring arch is 96 metre spanwith two side approach spans of 36.5metres. Much of the reinforced concretedeck was precast off site and made toact compositely with the steel plate girderdeck with in-situ concrete stitches. Thearch is a diamond section box fabricatedin three sections off site from steel plateand welded together in place over theriver. Foundations are all fully piled torock some 30m below river bed level. Thebridge serves as a link, particularly forpublic transport between the SECC andthe north bank developments and thesouth bank media village, residential,commercial and leisure developments.

12 The City Union RailwayBridge - 1899Engineer: William MelvilleIn 1900 the railway system was stillexpanding in Scotland with keencompetition between the big companies.The two railway bridges across the Clydewere struggling to cope with trafficdemands. The City Union Railway Bridgeopened in 1899 in response to the demandto carry four tracks into St Enoch Station.

It was built beneath the previous bridgeso that the rail traffic could continue touse the lines during construction. It istherefore rather squat in appearance. Thiswas the first of the permanent ClydeBridges to have a steel superstructure.The bridge served the main routes fromthe south to the now demolished St EnochStation.

13 Albert Bridge - 1871Engineer: Bell & MillerThe piers and abutments are founded onconcrete filled cast iron caissons, sunksome 86ft below water level. Traditionalmasonry was rejected in favour of rivettedwrought iron elliptical arches, the largestof which spans 35m. The arch ribs aremasked by cast iron spandrels adornedwith the Royal coat of arms, the coat ofarms of Prince Albert and those of variouscorporate bodies. This is the fifth bridgeon the site, the previous longest survivingbeing a masonry arch bridge designedby Robert Stevenson, grandfather ofRobert Louis Stevenson.

14 Tidal Weir and Pipe Bridge- 1901 (rebuilt 1949)Engineer: FGM StoneyThe debate on weirs on the Clyde hasraged since the first was constructed toprotect the foundations of the BroomielawBridge in 1772. In the 19th centuryeminent engineers argued forcefully forand against a weir. From 1851 to 1880 aweir with a lock stood on this site.

The first tidal weir was completed in 1901,and remained until scour undermined anabutment foundation in 1941 leading tocollapse. The present steel structure,which also carries large diameter pipesacross the Clyde, was completed in 1949as part of the scheme to replace theearlier weir. Today the primary purposeof the weir is to maintain the upstreamwater levels for environmental and leisurepurposes.

15 St Andrew’s SuspensionBridge - 1856Engineer: Neil RobsonThe chains and deck are wrought iron,the pylons cast iron, each with four flutedCorinthian columns almost 6 metres high.Its construction was promoted by BailieHarvey for the safer passage of factoryworkers who had previously used a ferryat the same location; “in time of spate ascene of great excitement”.

In 1997 the parapets and timber deckingwere replaced, and the ornamental castiron features of the Corinthian columnsrefurbished. Repainting and landscapingworks emphasised the St Andrew’s theme.

16 King’s Bridge - 1933Engineer: TPM SomersAt a width of 21m between parapets thebridge has been described as being ‘soflat and wide that one can easily crosswithout noticing its existence’. Completedin 1933, the bridge has four equal 21 metrespans comprising a series of rivetted steelplate girders supporting a reinforcedconcrete bridge deck. Each of the piersdivide at low level into arches which springfrom deep foundations.

17 Polmadie Bridge - 1955Engineer: Robert BruceConstructed in 1954-1955, Polmadie Bridgeis a prestressed concrete footbridge. Itoccupies the site of a timber bridge whichwas built in 1901, using timber salvagedfrom a service bridge used during theconstruction of Glasgow Bridge. This bridgewas burnt down and replaced at least oncebefore being replaced by the presentconcrete construction.

18 Rutherglen Bridge - 1896Engineer: Crouch & HoggThis bridge, with three spans of 28, 30 amd28 metres, was designed at a time whenmasonry arches were becoming outmoded - the age of steel had begun. Foundationtechniques were however up to date, and thepiers were founded on steel caissons sunk torock level by a combination of dead weightand men hand digging inside a chamber ofcompressed air. The men worked three shiftsof eight hours each, in chambers lit by candles,until the caissons reached a solid foundation18m below river level.

A previous Rutherglen bridge, of five spanmasonry arch design, was built in 1774-1775. Its engineer is reputed to have beenJames Watt, developer of the steam engine,during his early years as a civil engineer.

19 1st Dalmarnock RailwayBridge - 1861Engineer: George GrahamBuilt for the Caledonian Railway Companybetween 1859 and 1861, this bridge carriedthe twin tracks of the Dalmarnock Branchline over the Clyde. The bridge was a sevenspan structure supported on concrete filledcast iron cylinders. The three river spans wereof bowstring construction, whilst the fourland spans were of plate web construction.Only the piers of the bridge remain.

20 2nd Dalmarnock RailwayBridge - 1897Engineer: George GrahamIn 1893 powers were granted to widen theDalmarnock Branch line, but instead ofwidening the existing bridge, a new onewas built upstream. Completed in 1897, thenew twin track bridge was subsequentlywidened to three tracks in 1923, giving atotal of five tracks over the Clyle at thislocation. Evidence of the widening can beseen in the girder spacing and theconstruction joints in the piers.

21 Dalmarnock Bridge - 1891Engineer: Crouch & HoggThis bridge is located close to the originalDalmarnock Ford, and is the furthest east ofall the Glasgow bridges on this trail. In 1821a timber ‘pay’ bridge was built for trafficbetween Dalmarnock on the north side andRutherglen on the south, including traffic tothe old Dalmarnock Pit. A replacement timberbridge was built in 1848.

The present bridge, built in 1891, was thefirst ‘flat’ bridge in Glasgow with five spansof about 18.5 metres. The piers are foundedon concrete filled wrought iron cylinders,terminating on the bedrock 20 metresbelow the river bed. The bridge deck wasreplaced in 1997 with weather resistantsteel beams and a reinforced concretedeck slab. The refurbishment utilised theoriginal cast iron gothic arcading parapetsand ornamental outer beam fascia panels.

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In 1850 the great world powers were atpeace, although soon to go to war in theCrimea. The California gold rush was in fullflood. The Napoleon dynasty ruled Franceand Sir Robert Peel was British PrimeMinister. Japan was still closed to the West;the first foreign squadron would not sailinto Japanese waters until 1853. The USAwas within 10 years of its civil war.

Around 1900 Glasgow reached the heightof its prosperity and influence, living upto its claim to be ‘the second city of theEmpire’. In 1900 there were 23 cities inthe world with populations greater thanhalf a million; six of them were in Britain.London, Paris and Berlin were the largestcities in Europe, the fourth largest wasGlasgow.

The Clyde bridges have bridged the years,and this heritage trail tells the story.

The Institution of Civil Engineers gratefully acknowledges the support ofGlasgow City Council in the publication of this leaflet.

ICE Scotland105 West George Street, Glasgow G2 1QLt: 0141 221 5276e: scotland@ice.org.ukwww.ice-eastofscotland.org.ukwww.ice-westofscotland.org.ukRegistered Charity Number: 210252

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Bell’s Bridge - 1988Engineer: Crouch & HoggConstructed in 1988 to link the Scottish Exhibition &Conference Centre with the Glasgow Garden Festivalsite, Bell’s Bridge comprises three spans, two of whichare suspended by cable stays from a needle shapedpylon. The cable stayed spans can rotate horizontallyon the south pier to allow passage for larger vessels.

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Clyde Arc, 2006

clydebridges

The story of Glasgow’s Clyde Bridges in many waysreflects the development of Glasgow. Glasgow maynot have grown beyond a quiet monastery town hadit not also been the lowest fordable point on theClyde. As the city flourished in the 18th and 19thcenturies, the demands for better communicationsresulted in bridges being built which, in turn,encouraged further trade and prosperity. So bridgesboth nurtured and reflected the growth of the city.

The story of Glasgow’s bridges also reflects the storyof transportation, from the pedestrian and horsetraffic of the middle ages, through railway mania inthe 19th century, and the 20th century age of themotor car, onwards into the new millennium.

About the Heritage Trail• Approximately 2 hours should be allowed for the walk from Millennium Bridge to Dalmarnock Bridge

• Trains run between Dalmarnock Station and Exhibition Station approximately every 15 minutes.

• The trail is waymarked by the symbol

1 Millennium Bridge

2 Bell’s Bridge

3 Clyde Arc

4 Kingston Bridge

5 Site of new IFSD Tradeston Footbridge

6 George the Fifth Bridge

7 2nd Caledonian Railway Bridge

8 1st Caledonian Railway Bridge (1878 - 1966)

9 Glasgow Bridge

10 South Portland Street Suspension Bridge

11 Victoria Bridge

12 City Union Railway Bridge

13 Albert Bridge

14 Tidal Weir and Pipe Bridge

15 St Andrew’s Suspension Bridge

16 King’s Bridge

17 Polmadie Bridge

18 Rutherglen Bridge

19 1st Dalmarnock Railway Bridge (1861 - 1897)

20 2nd Dalmarnock Railway Bridge

21 Dalmarnock Bridge

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It also reflects the story of civil engineering.Developments in engineering materials andknowledge can be traced in the techniques usedto construct the Clyde bridges. Timber and stone,cast iron, wrought iron and steel, reinforced andpre-stressed concrete, were all used in Glasgow’sClyde bridges. Virtually all bridge types arerepresented on the Clyde; the beam, beam and slab(with solid girders, lattice girders or box girders),the arch, the tied bowstring arch, the suspensionbridge, the cable stayed bridge and the balancedcantilever. A walk from the Millennium Bridge toDalmarnock Bridge will take you past exhibits ofmore than 150 years of bridge engineering history.

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