Barker Crossing

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Barker Crossing
Army Bridge Mill Field on 3rd December, 2009 (photo - Andy V Byers).JPG
Barker Crossing under construction
Coordinates 54°38′56″N3°32′08″W / 54.6488°N 3.5355°W / 54.6488; -3.5355
Carries Pedestrians
Crosses River Derwent
Locale Workington
Characteristics
Design Mabey Logistic Support Bridge
MaterialSteel
Total length52 metres (171 ft)
History
Constructed by Royal Engineers
(3 Armoured Engineer Squadron) [1]
Construction start27 November 2009;
13 years ago
 (2009-11-27)
Construction end5 December 2009;
13 years ago
 (2009-12-05)
Opened7 December 2009;
13 years ago
 (2009-12-07)
Closed14 February 2011;
12 years ago
 (2011-02-14)
Location
Barker Crossing

Barker Crossing was a pedestrian footbridge in Workington, Cumbria, England that crossed the River Derwent, and linked the north and south sides of the town. Army engineers built it in November 2009 after flooding put the town's bridges out of use, and removed it in February 2011. The bridge was named after police officer Bill Barker, who died when the Northside Bridge in Workington collapsed below him. [2]

Contents

History

During the November 2009 Great Britain and Ireland floods, all four road and pedestrian bridges in Workington were either swept away, or severely damaged, leaving one sound railway bridge crossing the River Derwent in the town. This left the residents with a 14-mile (23 km) trip to get from one side of the Derwent to the other. [3] On 30 November 2009, Workington North railway station was opened allowing people to travel by train between the north and south sides. [4]

Construction

Foundations on the river banks were started on 27 November 2009 and used 4,000 tonnes of aggregate. [5] The 110 tonne, 52 metre single-span Mabey Logistic Support Bridge was constructed in Mill Field, on the south bank, and launched across the river, with its "nose" landing on the north bank on 4 December. The bridge was then pushed onto the north bank, and a steel deck laid. [6] Street furniture including lighting was added, and the bridge opened to the public just after 08:00 (GMT) on 7 December 2009.

The bridge was constructed by Royal Engineers of 3 Armoured Engineer Squadron, 22 Engineer regiment based at Tidworth, Wiltshire. [7] They worked 24 hours a day in adverse weather conditions including driving rain much of the week and temperatures as low as -8C. [5]

Naming

The bridge was named in honour of PC Bill Barker [1] who drowned in the River Derwent in Workington in the early morning of 20 November 2009. Barker was on the damaged Northside Bridge, stopping traffic from using it. The bridge was swept away beneath him. [8] His body was washed up on a beach at Allonby. He left a widow, Hazel, and four children. [9] The bridge was named after Barker following a campaign by teenagers from Workington launched on YouTube. [2] [10]

Barker joined the police on 3 January 1984, at age 19. He worked on Brigham Traffic Control, then the Western Mobile Support Group which then became the Western Roads Policing Unit. He was a family liaison officer. In August 1997, he received a chief constable’s commendation for his courage and tenacity during a pursuit with a Land Rover Discovery in the Keswick area; it rammed his car twice. The then Prime Minister Gordon Brown described him as a "very heroic, very brave man". [11]

On 27 November 2009, he was buried at Egremont, Cumbria. His funeral was the lead item on the BBC TV 6 o'clock news. [12] The next day, Prince Charles met his family in private. [13] The inquest into Barker's death opened on 13 October 2010 at Cleator Moor civic hall. [14] On 15 October 2010 the inquest ruled that Barker's death was an accident. [15]

Closure

On 14 February 2011 work began to remove the bridge, which was no longer needed as the repaired Calva Bridge was due to reopen to pedestrians that day. [16] [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Workington</span> Coastal town in Cumbria, England

Workington is a coastal town and civil parish at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast in Cumberland, Cumbria, England. At the 2011 census it had a population of 25,207.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cockermouth</span> Town and parish in England

Cockermouth is a market town and civil parish in the Cumberland unitary area of Cumbria, England, so named because it is at the confluence of the River Cocker as it flows into the River Derwent. The mid-2010 census estimates state that Cockermouth has a population of 8,204, increasing to 8,761 at the 2011 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A596 road</span>

The A596 is a primary route in Cumbria, in northern England, that runs between Thursby and Workington. For its entirety the A596 parallels the A595, and meets the A595 at both ends. The A596 begins its course at a roundabout junction with the A595 at Thursby, before continuing past the towns of Wigton and Aspatria. As it travels further towards the coast, it reaches the town of Maryport, where there is a junction to the B5300 heading up the coast to Silloth via Allonby, Mawbray, and Beckfoot. It then crosses over the River Derwent, skirting the eastern edge of Workington shortly before terminating at the junction with the A595 at Lillyhall.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Workington railway station</span> Railway station in Cumbria, England

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Workington Town R.L.F.C. is a semi-professional rugby league club playing in Workington in west Cumbria.

The Cockermouth & Workington Railway was an English railway company which built and operated a railway between the Cumberland towns of Workington and Cockermouth. The railway opened for service in 1847, and ran from the Whitehaven Junction Railway station at Workington to a station at Cockermouth near the bridge over the Derwent. A single-tracked line of eight and a half miles length, its revenue came largely from the transport of coal from the pits of the lower Derwent valley to the port at Workington for shipment by sea. The Marron extension of the Whitehaven, Cleator and Egremont Railway and the Derwent Branch of the Maryport and Carlisle Railway were both constructed to link with the C&WR and together give an alternative route for the northward movement of haematite ore from the Cumberland ore-field. The completion of the Cockermouth, Keswick and Penrith Railway made the C&WR part of a continuous through route between South Durham and the Cumberland orefield. These developments both improved the potential profitability of the C&WR, and made control of it important to bigger companies wishing to maximise the iron-ore traffic over their lines: the C&WR was absorbed by the London and North Western Railway in 1866.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Great Britain and Ireland floods</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Workington North railway station</span> Former railway station in Cumbria, England

Workington North railway station was a temporary railway station in Cumbria, United Kingdom, constructed following floods which cut all road access to Workington town centre from north of the River Derwent. The station was located 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Workington station on the Cumbrian Coast Line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mabey Group</span>

The Mabey Group is a British-based group of engineering companies, which specialises in steel fabrication, plant hire and construction products. It was initially established by Guy Mabey as a building supplies business in 1923, and expanded into engineering work, particularly bridging, under the leadership of his son, Bevil Mabey, after World War II. In the early 21st century, it was implicated in bribery scandals over corrupt payments to win contracts in countries including Iraq, Jamaica and Ghana. It sold its bridge business in May 2019 to US-based Acrow Bridge.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Workington floods</span>

During the twenty-four hours before Friday 20 November 2009, rainfall of over 300 mm (12 in) was recorded in Cumbria. Flooding along the Borrowdale and Derwent Valley meant that some areas were up to 8 feet (2.4 m) deep in water. The surge of water off the fells of the Lake District which flowed into Workington down the River Derwent washed away a road bridge and a footbridge. PC Bill Barker was killed when Northside Bridge collapsed. The cemetery at Camerton, historically the burial ground for the community of Seaton, was badly damaged with many gravestones being damaged or upturned.

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References

  1. 1 2 "Barker Crossing Opens". MOD Oracle. NSI (Holdings) Ltd. 7 December 2009. Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  2. 1 2 Couzens, Jo (7 December 2009). "Bridge Named In Honour Of Hero Policeman". Sky News International. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  3. Wainwright, Martin (7 December 2009). "Footbridge reunites Workington after floods". London. Archived from the original on 8 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  4. Hume, Colette (30 November 2009). "Workington gets new rail station after Cumbria flood". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2 December 2009. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
  5. 1 2 Ingham, John (8 December 2009). "BRIDGE DEDICATED TO TRAGIC POLICE HERO REUNITES FLOOD TOWN". Daily Express. Northern and Shell Media Publications. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  6. Stimpson, Jo (7 December 2009). "Workington temporary bridge opens for use". New Civil Engineer. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  7. "Soldiers help in flood hit Cumbria". Salisbury Journal. 1 December 2009. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  8. Jenkins, Russell (28 November 2009). "Town pays tribute to flood hero PC Bill Barker". The Times. London. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  9. Stokes, Paul (20 November 2009). "Cumbria floods: Pc Bill Barker died on eve of his birthday". Telegraph website. London. Archived from the original on 23 November 2009. Retrieved 21 November 2009.
  10. "Flooded Workington united by new army-built bridge". BBC News. 7 December 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2009. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  11. Stokes, Paul (20 November 2009). "Cumbria floods: Pc Bill Barker died on eve of his birthday - Telegraph". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  12. "United in Grief and Respect". Egremont Today. Published by Egremont & District Labour Party. Archived from the original on 14 March 2004. Retrieved 4 January 2010.
  13. "PC Bill Barker's family meet Prince Charles". The Whitehaven News. newsandstar. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  14. Griffiths, Nick. "Cumbrian flood bridge 'rippled' before policeman swept to his death". News and Star. Retrieved 13 October 2010.
  15. "Pc Bill Barker's Cumbria flood death an accident". BBC. 15 October 2010. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  16. "7/2/2011 - Barker Crossing and Workington (Calva) bridge progress update : Cumbria County Council". cumbria.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
  17. "Workington's army-built flood bridge removed". BBC. 8 February 2011. Retrieved 14 February 2011.