26-586: The Royal Border Bridge spans the River Tweed between Berwick-upon-Tweed and Tweedmouth in Northumberland , England . It is a Grade I listed railway viaduct built between 1847 and 1850, when it was opened by Queen Victoria . It was designed by Robert Stephenson (son of railway pioneer George Stephenson ). It was built for the York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway and is still in regular use today, as part of
52-431: A buttress . The river piers were deliberately shaped at water level in such a manner that sheets of ice flowing in the river would be broken up on contact with the bridge; this process was aided by the embedding of several iron bars into the masonry for greater strength. This feature was covered by later alterations to the piers, which were performed as a part of measures made to accommodate for an extra rail track. While
78-549: A drumlin field . It is the relic of a paleo- ice stream that flowed through the area during the last glaciation. Major towns through which the Tweed flows include Innerleithen , Peebles , Galashiels , Melrose , Kelso , Coldstream and Berwick-upon-Tweed , where it flows into the North Sea . Tweed tributaries include: The upper parts of the catchment of the Tweed in Scotland form
104-595: A non-Celtic form of the Indo-European root *teuha- meaning "swell, grow powerful". The River Tweed flows primarily through the scenic Borders region of Scotland. Eastwards from the settlements on opposing banks of Birgham and Carham it forms the historic boundary between Scotland and England. It rises in the Lowther Hills at Tweed's Well near to where the Clyde , draining northwest (10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from
130-546: A one-mile length of the route; the non-masonry sections consist of earth embankments. On 15 May 1847, the foundation stone for what would become the Royal Border Bridge, which was then simply referred to as the Tweed Viaduct , was laid. The Cumberland -based construction firm McKay & Blackstock were appointed to build the structure, while the civil engineer George Barclay Bruce , a former apprentice of Stephenson's,
156-522: A permanent lighting system to be installed. During 2016, the bridge was fitted with colour-changing lights; the installation being completed in time for the structure's 160th anniversary. River Tweed The River Tweed , or Tweed Water , Scots : Watter o Tweid , Welsh : Tuedd ), is a river 97 miles (156 km) long that flows east across the Border region in Scotland and northern England. Tweed cloth derives its name from its association with
182-415: Is used throughout the structure, which is complete with brickwork soffits that form the arches' undersides, and covered by stone cladding . The greatest height of the structure is 38.4 metres, which is located at the deepest point of the riverbed below. Possessing a total length of 658 metres, each of the bridge's over-arch spans measures 18.6 metres. The contract for the bridge's construction pertained to
208-462: The East Coast Main Line . Despite its name, the bridge does not in fact span the border between England and Scotland , which is approximately three miles further north. The bridge is 659 metres (2,162 ft) long and constructed in stone except for brick soffits to the arches . It has 28 arches, each spanning 60 feet (18 m). The railway is carried 37 metres (121 ft) above
234-513: The River Tweed. The Tweed is one of the great salmon rivers of Britain and the only river in England where an Environment Agency rod licence is not required for angling . The river generates a large income for the local borders region, attracting anglers from all around the world. Tweed may represent an Old Brittonic name meaning "border". A doubtful proposal is that the name is derived from
260-534: The Tweed's Well), and the Annan draining south (1.9 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the Tweed's Well) also rise. "Annan, Tweed and Clyde rise oot the ae hillside" is a saying from the Border region. East of Kelso , it becomes a section of the eastern part of the border. Entering England, its lower reaches are in Northumberland , where it enters the North Sea at Berwick-upon-Tweed . The river east of St Boswells runs through
286-433: The application of a patented Nasmyth steam-powered pile driver . In order to control and effectively drain away water at the site, several deep cofferdams were constructed which, along with several steam-driven pumps, worked together to keep out the water. The first elements of the structure to be completed were the 15 land arches, along with the stop pier; during the construction of the remaining arches, this functioned as
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#1732858879339312-513: The area known as Tweeddale , part of which is protected as the Upper Tweeddale National Scenic Area , one of 40 such areas in Scotland which are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection from inappropriate development. Despite that the catchment straddles the border between Scotland and England, management of it – in terms of water quality, bio-security, and ultimately protection of
338-516: The bridge. After having stood for 143 years as a major part of the East Coast Main Line, the Royal Border Bridge underwent significant maintenance for the first time during 1993. The restoration program, which was largely focused upon repairs to the 15 land based arches, was undertaken as a joint project between the newly founded railway infrastructure maintenance firm Railtrack and English Heritage . During early 2010, plans were mooted for
364-415: The height of construction activity, the workforce is believed to have involved upwards of 2,700 men. During the designing of the structure, particular attention was paid to the foundations of the bridge. Firmly anchoring the bridge involved the driving of many piles into the bedrock , which could be reached only by going through roughly 12 metres of dense gravel above; this task was considerably aided by
390-472: The installation of a night-time illumination scheme upon the Royal Border Bridge; at the time, this measure was promoted as being a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the death of Robert Stephenson. Originally meant to be operational by November 2010, weather conditions, particularly ice , damaged underwater cables, delaying the illumination and preventing some lights from functioning. In January 2012, Northumberland County Council filed its application for
416-404: The key bridges along the envisioned route, although some of the detailed work was commonly performed by other figures as well. The viaduct, which is constructed on a gentle curve, was a conventional masonry structure. It consists of 28 arches, 15 of which being over land to the south of the River Tweed and 13 over the river itself; these were set out in two groups separated by a stop pier. Masonry
442-522: The line along the surveyed route, the completion of several major structures, such as the High Level Bridge in Newcastle and the Royal Border Bridge itself, was necessary to traverse terrain features. In the case of the Royal Border Bridge, it was required to take the line over the River Tweed at a site close to the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed , Northumberland . During 1847, Hudson was instrumental in
468-503: The merger of the N&;BR with another of his business interests, the York and Newcastle Railway (Y&NR) to form the York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway (YN&BR). This combined entity sought to complete a continuous line between the British capital cities of London and Edinburgh . The company's chief engineer, and thus the individual most crucial to the completion of the desired line,
494-510: The permanent structure was still under construction, several temporary timber viaducts were deployed and used by early train services, as well as by construction-related traffic. In this fashion, the overall route could be opened without having to wait for the completion of the Royal Border Bridge, somewhat alleviating pressure from investors. This decision proved beneficial as, while the permanent structure had been intended to be completed in July 1849, it
520-453: The river level. During 1989, it was electrified as a part of the wider East Coast Main Line electrification scheme. Between 1993 and 1996, the structure underwent significant repair work for the first time in a Railtrack -led project, which was partially funded by English Heritage . The Royal Border Bridge has its origins in the ambitions of Newcastle and Berwick Railway (N&BR) company, which
546-490: The salmon of the River Tweed – is overseen by a single body, the River Tweed Commission. As of 2024 , work is in progress on the development of a 113-mile (182 km) walking and cycling route following the length of the river from Moffat to Berwick-on-Tweed. The work includes new sections of path, upgrades to existing paths, bridge replacement and repairs, pedestrian road crossings, lighting and signage. The path
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#1732858879339572-446: Was formed in 1845 under the control of the prolific railway financier and politician George Hudson . Almost immediately following its founding, the N&BR's proposed line was authorised by an Act of Parliament and construction work had commenced by July 1845. While much of the line was completed within two years of this date, work upon several major structures, including the Royal Border Bridge, had barely begun. In order to construct
598-516: Was modified by British Rail to accommodate the installation of electrification gantries. As a consequence of the Royal Border Bridge having been recognised with Grade 1 listed status , the overhead line infrastructure used was specially designed for a reduced visual impact on the bridge and had to be reviewed and approved by the Royal Fine Art Commission prior to its installation. The installation allows for electric traction to traverse
624-449: Was not ready to carry rail traffic until March 1850. On 29 August 1850, the bridge was officially opened in a ceremony officiated by the reigning monarch, Queen Victoria , and Prince Albert ; it was at this event that the Queen consented for the structure to be formally named as the Royal Border Bridge. During 1989, as a part of the East Coast Main Line electrification program, the structure
650-442: Was selected to serve as the resident engineer, being responsible overseeing the day-to-day work at the site. Reportedly, the construction of the Royal Border Bridge consumed 8 million cubic feet (227,000 cubic metres) of stone; the inner part of the arches alone required 2.5 million bricks. Many of the same techniques that had been employed in the construction of Newcastle's High Level Bridge were shared with this structure as well. At
676-461: Was the noted railway engineer Robert Stephenson , who was the son of the railway pioneer George Stephenson . Regardless of Stephenson's presence at the YN&;BR, the majority of the planning and engineering was undertaken by the civil engineer Thomas Elliot Harrison , albeit this work was performed under Stephenson's supervision. In particular, Stephenson typically played a hands-on role in the design of
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