Monk Bridge Viaduct Garden | |
---|---|
Type | Elevated urban linear park; public park |
Location | Leeds, West Yorkshire |
Coordinates | 53°47′39″N1°33′34″W / 53.7943°N 1.5595°W |
Created | 2023 |
Status | Grade II listed |
The Monk Bridge Viaduct Garden, initially marketed as the Viaduct Urban Garden, is an elevated park and garden in Leeds, England. The garden or park is located on top of the Grade II listed viaduct.
The park was completed in 2023, after it was converted from a disused railway viaduct. [1]
The Monk Bridge viaduct on which the park is located was constructed in the 1800s, presumed to be around the same time as the opening of the Leeds Central railway station in 1854. Leeds opted to close one of its central train stations in 1961 and amalgamated all the rail to Leeds railway station, which is now the only central railway station in Leeds. Leeds Central was then demolished years later, its site has now become the business district and public square, Wellington Place.
The viaduct was partly demolished, leaving around 200 meters of what would have been around half a kilometre long when the station was in use. Leeds's south is dotted with railway viaducts, both in use and abandoned. Following completion of New York City's High Line, a greenway was suggested on another viaduct, but construction is yet to start on that project. [2] Meanwhile, a nearby developer purchased a much shorter disused viaduct, which has now become the Viaduct Urban Garden. [3]
The design of the new Viaduct Garden was carried out by Ares Landscape Architects, as part of the adjacent residential development of The Junction.
Work on converting the viaduct began in 2022 and opened the first phase of the park in 2023. [4] [5] When the park opened it became the first elevated park in the county of Yorkshire. [6]
The park is accessed to the west of Wellington Place, a public square in Leeds' west end. A new stairwell and lift were constructed on the end of the viaduct for access. Other access points are likely to be available in the future as nearby developments reach completion. [6]
The Viaduct Urban Garden isn't to be confused with the Holbeck Viaduct Project, which is a much longer viaduct where proposals for over a decade have suggested the creation of a greenway running over a 1 mile in length. [7]
The old train station was located a few hundred meters from the current viaduct park as you look towards central Leeds, with the viaduct serving as the main entrance and exit to the terminus train station. [8]
A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide valley, road, river, or other low-lying terrain features and obstacles. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via meaning "road", and ducere meaning "to lead". It is a 19th-century derivation from an analogy with ancient Roman aqueducts. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early viaducts comprised a series of arches of roughly equal length.
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The Harrogate line is a passenger rail line through parts of North Yorkshire and the West Yorkshire area of northern England connecting Leeds to York by way of Harrogate and Knaresborough. Service on the line is operated by Northern, with a few additional workings by London North Eastern Railway starting and terminating at Harrogate. West Yorkshire Metro's bus and rail MetroCard ticket is available for journeys between Leeds and Harrogate.
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A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcars, or with disused track. As shared-use paths, rail trails are primarily for non-motorized traffic including pedestrians, bicycles, horseback riders, skaters, and cross-country skiers, although snowmobiles and ATVs may be allowed. The characteristics of abandoned railways—gentle grades, well-engineered rights of way and structures, and passage through historical areas—lend themselves to rail trails and account for their popularity. Many rail trails are long-distance trails, while some shorter rail trails are known as greenways or linear parks.
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The Coulée verte René-Dumont or Promenade plantée René-Dumont is a 4.7 km (2.9 mi) elevated linear park built on top of obsolete railway infrastructure in the 12th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was inaugurated in 1993.
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Leeds city centre is the central business district of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is roughly bounded by the Inner Ring Road to the north and the River Aire to the south and can be divided into several quarters.
Holbeck railway station was a railway station that served the district of Holbeck, in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
The Leeds–Northallerton railway is a partly disused railway line between West and North Yorkshire, in northern England.
Low Moor railway station serves the villages of Low Moor and Oakenshaw in the south of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The station is situated on the Calder Valley Line between Bradford Interchange and Halifax.
Leeds New Lane was a proposed new railway station to accommodate High Speed Two rail services in West Yorkshire, England. It was planned to be constructed on a viaduct on New Lane south of Leeds city centre, the River Aire and Leeds City station to which it would be connected by an elevated walkway. The site is occupied by Central Park, a small low-rise office park built in the 1990s and other small office buildings.
The Holbeck Viaduct Project is a community project that proposes bringing the Holbeck Viaduct in Leeds, England back into public use. The project is supported by a community group of the same name.
Heckmondwike Spen was a railway station opened by the London & North Western Railway (LNWR) in Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire, England. The station was one of two in the town of Heckmondwike, the other being Heckmondwike railway station which was opened by the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway (L&Y). Both stations have been closed and the lines they served have closed too although the formations that they occupied have both been converted into greenways.
The Spen Valley Line was a railway that connected Mirfield with Low Moor through the Spen Valley in West Yorkshire, England. Opened up by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway in 1847, with full opening to Low Moor in 1848, the line served a busy industrial and textile area and allowed a connection for trains between Huddersfield and Bradford. The line was absorbed by the London & North Western Railway, the London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) and British Railways on Nationalisation. A separate link between Heckmondwike Central and Thornhill that opened later and was known as the Ravensthorpe Branch, allowed through running to Wakefield and beyond. The line was closed down to passengers in 1965 with freight continuing sporadically until 1981. A Spur onto the former Leeds New Line from the Ravensthorpe Branch kept the very southern end open until the late 1980s. The majority of the route is now the Spen Valley Greenway cycle path.
Knaresborough Viaduct is a viaduct in the North Yorkshire town of Knaresborough, England. The viaduct carries the Harrogate line over the River Nidd in the town. The viaduct was supposed to have opened in 1848, but the first construction collapsed into the river very near to completion, which necessitated a new viaduct and delayed the opening of the line through Knaresborough by three years.