Lethbridge Viaduct

Lethbridge Viaduct
Lethbridge Viaduct
Coordinates	49°41′51″N112°52′7″W / 49.69750°N 112.86861°W
Carries	Railway
Crosses	Oldman River
Locale	Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
Official name	Lethbridge Viaduct
Maintained by	Canadian Pacific Kansas City
Characteristics
Total length	1,624 m
Width	32.6 m
Height	95.7 m
History
Opened	1909;115 years ago
Location

Last updated September 04, 2024

The Lethbridge Viaduct, commonly known as the High Level Bridge, is a railway trestle bridge over the Oldman River in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. Constructed between 1907 and 1909 by the Canadian Pacific Railway, it is the largest railway structure in Canada and the largest of its type in the world, and is still regularly maintained and used over a century since its construction.^[1]

History

class=notpageimage|

Location of Lethbridge Viaduct in Lethbridge

Prior to the Lethbridge Viaduct, the main railway crossing over the Oldman River was a wooden trestle measuring 894 m (2,933 ft) long and 20 m (66 ft) high. The trestles on the original line out of Lethbridge totalled 4.5 km (2.8 mi). Many railways in the area went through the Crowsnest Pass between Lethbridge and Fort Macleod, over steep grades that hampered operations. In addition, extensive cuts and many other bridges were needed to cross various creeks and coulees. Past the St. Mary River crossing, several large cuts and large bridges were also required, including a 270 m (900 ft) trestle with a 61 m (200 ft) span west of the St. Mary River, a 180 m (600 ft) trestle at Eight-Mile Coulee, and another of 270 m (900 ft) in length near Eight-Mile Coulee. At Sixteen-Mile Coulee there was a 240 m (800 ft) trestle, 41 m (133 ft) high with a 61 m (200 ft) truss span over the creek.

Although the original route accomplished its purpose in allowing the CPR to rapidly complete the railway, it turned out to be expensive to operate. The original bridges were designed to last only about 10 years. In 1905, the CPR decided, to construct a completely new route on a better gradient to bypass the original line. The new line was built to the north of the Oldman River. It required two bridges, one in Lethbridge—the High Level Bridge—over the Oldman River, and another large bridge over the Oldman River again west of Monarch. This route eliminated many curves and reduced the grade from 1.2 percent to only 0.4 percent. It also saved 8.47 km (5.26 mi) of track.

The Lethbridge Viaduct was designed by the CPR's bridge department in Montreal, Quebec. Construction began in the summer of 1907, directed by CPR's Assistant Chief Engineer John Edward Schwitzer. Clearing and grading the site, construction of piers, and placement of the footings progressed while the steelwork was being prefabricated. The steelwork was manufactured by the Canadian Bridge Company of Walkerville, Ontario. Raising the steelwork began in mid-August 1908 and was performed by around 100 workers. Transport of the steel to the site required 645 railway cars while another 40 were needed to bring in equipment. Once the steelwork reached track level at the Lethbridge end, it was possible to begin assembly using a huge travelling crane called an "erection traveller", which was built on site at a cost of $100,000 and was used to lower the steel beams and girders into place. The last girder was placed in June 1909 and riveting was completed in August 1909. The total cost of the Lethbridge Viaduct's construction was $1,334,525.

Specifications

Length: 1,623.860 m (5,327 ft 7+1⁄2 in)
Height: 96 m (314 ft) above river bed
Materials: 11,200 tonnes (12,400 short tons) of steel
Deck spans and lengths:
- 44 plate girder spans each of 20.45 m (67 ft 1 in)
- 22 plate girder spans each of 30.12 m (98 ft 10 in)
- one riveted lattice-truss of 33 m (107 ft)
Rigid braced steel towers: total of 33

The second bridge over the Oldman River, near Monarch, is 580 m (1,890 ft) long and 46 m (150 ft) high.

In popular culture

The Lethbridge Viaduct appears in the 4th episode of the 2023 TV series The Last of Us . Through videographic editing, the bridge is depicted as abandoned for decades and collapsed in the middle.^[3]

Related Research Articles

A trestle bridge is a bridge composed of a number of short spans supported by closely spaced frames. A trestle is a rigid frame used as a support, historically a tripod used to support a stool or a pair of isosceles triangles joined at their apices by a plank or beam such as the support structure for a trestle table. Each supporting frame is a bent. A trestle differs from a viaduct in that viaducts have towers that support much longer spans and typically have a higher elevation.

The King Edward VII Bridge is a railway bridge spanning the River Tyne between Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead, in North East England. It is a Grade II listed structure. The King Edward VII bridge has been described as “Britain’s last great railway bridge”.

The Landore viaduct is a railway viaduct over the Swansea valley and the River Tawe at Landore in south Wales. It provides a link between Swansea city center and the West Wales Line to the South Wales Main Line. The valley crossing provides a panoramic view of Landore, Kilvey Hill, the Liberty Stadium and the Swansea Enterprise Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murrumbidgee River railway bridge, Wagga Wagga</span> Bridge in New South Wales, Australia

The Murrumbidgee River railway bridge is a former railway bridge that carried the Main Southern railway line across the Murrumbidgee River in Wagga Wagga, Australia. The original bridge, erected in 1881, was replaced in 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windsor Railway Bridge</span> Bridge in Windsor

Windsor Railway Bridge is a wrought iron 'bow and string' bridge in Windsor, Berkshire, crossing the River Thames on the reach between Romney Lock and Boveney Lock. It carries the branch line between Slough and Windsor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Coat Trail</span> Highway in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba

The Red Coat Trail is a 1,300-kilometre (810 mi) route that approximates the path taken in 1874 by the North-West Mounted Police in their March West from Fort Dufferin to Fort Whoop-Up.

The Mohaka Viaduct is a railway viaduct spanning the Mohaka River in northern Hawke’s Bay, on the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand, near the small settlement of Raupunga. It was built between 1930 and 1937 by the Public Works Department (PWD) for the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR). It is 276.8 metres (908 ft) in length, and at 95 metres (312 ft), is the tallest viaduct in Australasia.

Stoney Creek Bridge is a Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) truss arch in southeastern British Columbia. This single-track crossing over Stoney Creek is in Glacier National Park, between Revelstoke and Golden.

The Goteik viaduct is a railway trestle over the Goteik Gorge of the Myitnge River in western Shan State, Myanmar. The bridge is between the two towns of Nawnghkio and Gokhteik, and it's part of the railways between Pyin Oo Lwin, the summer capital of the former British colonial administrators of Burma, and Lashio, the principal town of northern Shan State. It is the highest bridge in Myanmar and when it was completed, the largest railway trestle in the world. It is located approximately 100 km northeast of Mandalay.

John Edward Schwitzer was assistant chief engineer for the Canadian Pacific Railway in the early 1900s. He was known for two major projects on the CPR, both that removed costly bottlenecks on the routes.

Sadliers Crossing Railway Bridge is a heritage-listed railway bridge at over Bremer River between Tallon Street, Sadliers Crossing and Dixon Street, Wulkuraka, Queensland, Australia on the Main Line (this section is now the Ipswich and Rosewood railway line. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 13 November 2008.

The Makatote Viaduct takes the North Island Main Trunk railway (NIMT) across the Makatote River in New Zealand. It is 335.7 km (208.6 mi) from Wellington, at the foot of Ruapehu, in northern Manawatū-Whanganui, between Erua and Pokaka.

The Murrumbidgee River railway bridge is a heritage-listed railway bridge across the Murrumbidgee River located on the Tumut railway line at Gundagai in the Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was built in 1903. It is also known as the Gundagai Rail Bridge over Murrumbidgee River and the Murrumbidgee River Railway Bridge. The property was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

Rupsha Railway Bridge is a railway bridge on Rupsha River. This bridge connects Khulna with Port of Mongla by railway network. Bangladesh Railway and Indian Larsen & Toubro Limited signed an agreement to construct the bridge. The bridge total length 5.13 kilometres (3.19 mi) long.

The Macleay River Railway Bridge is a heritage-listed railway bridge that carries the North Coast railway line across the Macleay River from Kempsey to South Kempsey in New South Wales, Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wolli Creek Aqueduct</span> Historic site in New South Wales, Australia

The Wolli Creek Aqueduct is a heritage-listed sewage aqueduct located at Unwin Street, Earlwood, City of Canterbury-Bankstown, New South Wales, Australia.

The Long Cove Creek railway viaducts are heritage-listed railway viaducts which carry the Main Suburban railway line over Long Cove Creek between the suburbs of Lewisham and Summer Hill in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The viaducts were designed and built by the New South Wales Government Railways. The property is owned by Transport Asset Holding Entity, an agency of the Government of New South Wales. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

Emu Plains Underbridge is a heritage-listed steel truss railway underbridge located off Bruce Neale Dr approximately 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) west of the Penrith railway station in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith in the City of Penrith local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by James Fraser, the existing lines branch and the New South Wales Government Railways. It was built in 1907, with fabrication by R. Tulloch & Co.; and erection by day labour. It is also known as Emu Plains Underbridge and Penrith Underbridge. The property is owned by Transport Asset Holding Entity, an agency of the Government of New South Wales. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 28 June 2013.

Gathurst Viaduct carries the M6 motorway across the Douglas valley at Shevington, Wigan, Greater Manchester, England.

The Little Salmon River trestle is a railway trestle bridge completed in 1911 and still in use in the community of New Denmark, near Grand Falls, New Brunswick, Canada. It is the second largest railway bridge in Canada and the largest railway structure in New Brunswick.

References

↑ Development, Mws.ca - Web and Application. "Canadian Civil Engineering History & Heritage". epe.lac-bac.gc.ca. Retrieved 2023-08-07.
↑ "Construction of the Lethbridge Viaduct National Historic Event". Parks Canada. Retrieved 2024-09-02.
↑ "Did you see that: Two recognizable Alberta spots were just spotted in episode four of "The Last of Us" | News". dailyhive.com.

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[Eng_History-1] Development, Mws.ca - Web and Application. "Canadian Civil Engineering History & Heritage". epe.lac-bac.gc.ca. Retrieved 2023-08-07.

[2] "Construction of the Lethbridge Viaduct National Historic Event". Parks Canada. Retrieved 2024-09-02.

[3] "Did you see that: Two recognizable Alberta spots were just spotted in episode four of "The Last of Us" | News". dailyhive.com.

[1]

[2]

[3]