Bennerley Viaduct (originally Ilkeston Viaduct[1] and known informally as the Iron Giant[2]) is a former railway bridge, now a foot and cycle bridge, between Ilkeston, Derbyshire, and Awsworth, Nottinghamshire, in central England. It was completed in 1877 and carried the Great Northern Railway's (GNR) Derbyshire Extension over the River Erewash, which forms the county boundary, and its wide, flat valley. The engineer was Samuel Abbott, who worked under Richard Johnson, the GNR's chief engineer. The site required a bespoke design as the ground would not support a traditional masonry viaduct due to extensive coal mining. The viaduct consists of 16 spans of wrought iron, lattice truss girders, carried on 15 wrought iron piers which are not fixed to the ground but are supported by brick and ashlar bases. The viaduct is 60 feet (18 metres) high, 26 feet (8 metres) wide between the parapets, and over a quarter of a mile (400 metres) long. It was once part of a chain of bridges and embankments carrying the railway for around two miles (three kilometres) across the valley but most of its supporting structures were demolished when the line closed in 1968. The only similar surviving bridge in the United Kingdom is Meldon Viaduct in Devon.
The viaduct opened in January 1878. Its working life was uneventful except for minor damage inflicted by a Zeppelin bombing raid during the First World War.
Plans to demolish the viaduct failed because of the cost of dismantling the ironwork and it became a listed building in 1974. After closure, the viaduct received little maintenance and fell into disrepair. Railway Paths, a walking and cycling charity, acquired it for preservation in 2001 but work faltered due to a lack of funding. The viaduct was listed on the Heritage at Risk Register in 2007 and the 2020 World Monuments Watch for its condition and lack of use. A detailed survey was undertaken in 2016 and funding for restoration work was secured in 2019. The work included rebuilding an embankment to allow step-free access. It opened to the public as part of a cycling and walking route in January 2022.
^Cite error: The named reference engineer was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Harby, Jennifer (7 August 2022). "Bennerley Viaduct marks its restoration year". BBC News. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
BennerleyViaduct (originally Ilkeston Viaduct and known informally as the Iron Giant) is a former railway bridge, now a foot and cycle bridge, between...
station, closed in September 1964. A major feature of this line was BennerleyViaduct, a 1,452-foot (443 m) long, 61-foot (19 m) high, wrought iron structure...
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trestle railway bridges in the United Kingdom, the other being the BennerleyViaduct, between Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, which differs by having lattice...
This is a list of viaducts and significant bridges of the United Kingdom's railways, past and present. List of bridges in the United Kingdom List of canal...
Britain, at BennerleyViaduct (extant), though in that instance the trestles are not as high. On other well-known trestle-supported viaducts, such as Meldon...
Central Railroad in 1859. BennerleyViaduct Bridge in Brown Township Dowery Dell Viaduct, also known as Hunnington or Frankley Viaduct Kew Railway Bridge Norwottuck...
However, the second part of the extension was not completed. This involved a viaduct at Dewsbury over the River Calder, a tunnel under Dewsbury Moor and a new...
Cossons OBE accepts invitation to be Friends of BennerleyViaduct Patron". Friends of BennerleyViaduct. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2022. "No...
Nottingham to Derby, crossing the Erewash Valley to Ilkeston over the BennerleyViaduct. This closed in September 1964. At Awsworth Junction, a short distance...
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Historic England & 1248409 Historic England & 1443591 Historic England, "BennerleyViaduct, Awsworth (1140437)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved...
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were 11 viaducts including Derby Town viaduct, 310 yards long. BennerleyViaduct at Ilkeston was an exceptional structure: BennerleyViaduct was one of...
railway junction at the BennerleyViaduct and steelworks near Awsworth 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) northwest of Nottingham. The viaduct, however, emerged with...
Grantham on the East Coast Main Line via Nottingham Victoria, over BennerleyViaduct (which still stands today) to Derby Friargate Station. This section...
these early examples. (Note that some bridges, for example the New Clyde Viaduct (or Second Caledonian Bridge) in Glasgow, appear to be of lattice construction...
April 1878. It crossed the Erewash Valley on a long lattice viaduct, named BennerleyViaduct. As well as several short connections to local mines, the Midland...
often as part of cycling and walking routes. One such structure is BennerleyViaduct, now owned by Railway Paths Ltd. NH is funded only to maintain the...
(destroyed by open cast mining) Greasley Arm (Some sections watered) BennerleyViaduct Newtons Lane A6096 road Coronation Road Pumped feed from River Erewash...
station from the direction of Nottingham Victoria railway station via BennerleyViaduct. Friar Gate is a street of Georgian houses on the edge of Derby city...
girder, as at Crumlin Viaduct, Belah and Meldon; though two rare examples, at Dowery Dell (demolished in 1962), and Bennerley had lattice girder decks...
Awsworth the line crossed the Erewash Valley by means of the impressive BennerleyViaduct which has been partly preserved. It then made the climb to Ilkeston...
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