Great Britain: Victoria Bridge at Bath

A 19th century wrought iron suspension bridge across the River Avon. The bridge was built in 1836 with iron chains instead of steel cables, which wouldn't be in use for another thirty years. The iron chains were draped over a pair of squat, stone towers. Each chain has a pair of sloping hangers supporting the deck. The slope of the hangers becomes more oblique towards the center of the bridge and puts longitudinal elements of the deck into compression. Each hanger is attached to a steel floor beam which carries the timber deck and iron railing.

An interesting article by RA Griffiths was written about this bridge.  The author discusses the designer, the design, the bridge's history, and recent improvements to the bridge and it's site. A structural analysis of the bridge is also provided. We'll take another look at this interesting bridge tomorrow.

Great Britain: Victoria Bridge at Bath by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.

Great Britain: Pulteney Bridge in Bath

I was hoping to enjoy a bath or swim in the mineral springs of Bath. However I was disappointed when my money just paid for the privilege of looking at some Roman ruins! Actually, I had arrived in Bath too early (or too late). In 2006 the Thermae Bath Spa opened with bathing and swimming facilities.

The thermal springs of Bath are a surprising phenomena since hot springs usually occur near the edges of tectonic plates (the UK is not seismically active). I remember after an earthquake near Paso Robles, California (in 2003) the thermal springs were disturbed and hot water gushed onto the streets for several months.

The Pulteney Bridge was completed in 1773. At that time, the upper class enjoyed vacations to Florence and Venice and became fond of the pretty river bridges lined with shops. The Pulteney Bridge has shops along both sides and a road (soon to be turned into a footpath) down the middle. Over time it was damaged by floods, by widenings, and by the shops that hung over the sides. The bridge was restored to something like it's original design in 1951 with further work done in 1975. It is is now a national monument and designated an English Heritage site.

I took this picture while standing on the Parade Bridge over the River Avon and looking north at Pulteney Bridge. Just downstream is a parabolic-shaped weir and the Bath Abbey.

Great Britain: Pulteney Bridge in Bath by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License.

Arch Bridges: Cumbria Pedestrian Bridge

Hiking through the Lake District in Northwestern England, we noticed slate being used for walls, footpaths, houses, and in today's bridge. Actually, slate is an interesting material for an arch bridge. The thin slabs are put face to face into an arch-shape and their self-weight pushes them into compression against the abutments.  There was no mortar so the slate is wedged in with the thicker ends on top. No mortar, no spandrels, and no deck: this is a very minimalist bridge.  Based on the amount of wear on the top surface, it must be hundreds of years old.

Arch Bridges: Cumbria Pedestrian Bridge by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.