Barrack Street Bridge is the second crossing of the
Eastern Railway line at its location just north of the Barrack Street intersection with
Wellington Street at the eastern end of the
Perth Railway Station
Perth railway station is the largest station on the Transperth network, serving the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. It serves as an interchange between the Airport, Armadale, Fremantle, Joondalup, Mandurah and Midland ...
yard in
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
, Western Australia. Despite its name the bridge carries
Beaufort Street
Beaufort Street is a major road in the inner north-eastern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, connecting the Morley area to the Perth central business district. For most of its length, it is a single-carriageway, two-way road with two lanes i ...
,
although it has been called Beaufort Street Bridge.
The development of the Eastern Railway through Perth created a large yard and railway station area that separated the
Perth central business district
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is p ...
(CBD) from its adjacent northern streets. The first railway bridge at
Barrack Street
Barrack Street is one of two major cross-streets in the Perth central business district, central business district of Perth, Western Australia. Together with St Georges Terrace, Wellington Street, Perth, Wellington Street and William Street, Pe ...
was timber, and in repair on a regular basis. It was demolished in 1894.
Current bridge
The current bridge, built in 19071908, was a dominant feature countered by the
Horseshoe Bridge
The Horseshoe Bridge in Perth, Western Australia is a traffic bridge that connects the Perth CBD to Northbridge, carrying William Street. It was constructed in 1904 to pass over the Fremantle railway line, with the horseshoe shape designed to f ...
at the western end of the railway station. Parts of the construction included
Donnybrook stone
Donnybrook stone is a fine to medium-grained Feldspar, feldspathic and Kaolinite, kaolinitic sandstone found near the town of Donnybrook, Western Australia. It originates from the early Cretaceous (144-132 mya (unit), MYA) and features shale Cl ...
and
Meckering granite.
It was also a location for paintings and photographs of the Perth railway station over time.
It lost its dominance in the landscape with the construction of the multi story car park adjacent to the west, in the late 20th century. Significant parts of the original railings were truncated by changes of the adjacent streets, but the lamps and fittings have been retained on the shortened sections.
Notes
References
{{Road infrastructure in Perth
Bridges completed in 1908
Road bridges in Perth, Western Australia
Barrack Street, Perth
Beaufort Street, Perth
1908 establishments in Australia