Navigable aqueducts (sometimes called water bridges) are bridge structures that carry
navigable
A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Such a navigable water is called a ''waterway'', and is preferably with few obstructions against di ...
waterway
A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary b ...
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...
s over other rivers, valleys, railways or roads. They are primarily distinguished by their size, carrying a larger cross-section of water than most water-supply
aqueducts
Aqueduct may refer to:
Structures
*Aqueduct (bridge), a bridge to convey water over an obstacle, such as a ravine or valley
*Navigable aqueduct, or water bridge, a structure to carry navigable waterway canals over other rivers, valleys, railw ...
. Roman aqueducts were used to transport water and were created in Ancient Rome. The long
steel Briare aqueduct carrying the
Canal latéral à la Loire
The Canal latéral à la Loire (, "canal parallel to the Loire") was constructed between 1827 and 1838 to connect the Canal de Briare at Briare and the Canal du Centre at Digoin, a distance of . It replaced the use of the river Loire, which wa ...
over the River
Loire
The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...
was built in 1896. It was ranked as the longest navigable aqueduct in the world for more than a century, until the
Magdeburg Water Bridge in Germany took the title in the early 21st century.
Early aqueducts such as the three on the
Canal du Midi had stone or brick arches, the longest span being on the
Cesse Aqueduct, built in 1690. But, the weight of the construction to support the trough with the clay or other lining to make it waterproof made these structures clumsy. In 1796
Longdon-on-Tern Aqueduct
The Longdon-on-Tern Aqueduct, near Longdon-on-Tern in Shropshire, was one of the first two canal aqueducts to be built from cast iron.
History
The cast iron canal aqueduct was re-engineered by Thomas Telford after the first construction desig ...
, the first large
cast iron
Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...
aqueduct was built by
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE, (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scot ...
at
Longdon-on-Tern on the
Shrewsbury Canal
The Shrewsbury Canal (or Shrewsbury and Newport Canal) was a canal in Shropshire, England. Authorised in 1793, the main line from Trench to Shrewsbury was fully open by 1797, but it remained isolated from the rest of the canal network until 183 ...
. It has a total length of across three intermediate piers. Within ten years Telford had completed the far more ambitious
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct
The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct (; cy, Traphont Ddŵr Pontcysyllte) is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee in the Vale of Llangollen in northeast Wales.
The 18-arched stone and cast iron structure is for use ...
in Wales on the
Llangollen Canal
The Llangollen Canal ( cy, Camlas Llangollen) is a navigable canal crossing the border between England and Wales. The waterway links Llangollen in Denbighshire, north Wales, with Hurleston in south Cheshire, via the town of Ellesmere, Shropshir ...
over the
River Dee valley, with a total length 307 metres. Other cast-iron aqueducts followed, such as the single-span
Stanley Ferry Aqueduct on the
Calder and Hebble Navigation
The Calder and Hebble Navigation is a broad inland waterway, with locks and bridgeholes that are suitable for boats, in West Yorkshire, England. Construction to improve the River Calder and the River Hebble began in 1759, and the initial sch ...
in 1839, with its innovative
through arch design.
There were 32 navigable aqueducts on the
Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...
, constructed 1817–1825 in
New York State
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
, United States.
Notable navigable aqueducts
*
Benjamin Outram
Benjamin Outram (1 April 1764 – 22 May 1805) was an English civil engineer, surveyor and industrialist. He was a pioneer in the building of canals and tramways.
Life
Born at Alfreton in Derbyshire, he began his career assisting his father J ...
's single-span Holmes Aqueduct on the
Derby Canal
The Derby Canal ran from the Trent and Mersey Canal at Swarkestone to Derby and Little Eaton, and to the Erewash Canal at Sandiacre, in Derbyshire, England. The canal was authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1793 and was fully completed in 179 ...
in
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...
was the world's first navigable
cast iron
Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...
aqueduct, narrowly pre-dating
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE, (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scot ...
's
Longdon-on-Tern Aqueduct
The Longdon-on-Tern Aqueduct, near Longdon-on-Tern in Shropshire, was one of the first two canal aqueducts to be built from cast iron.
History
The cast iron canal aqueduct was re-engineered by Thomas Telford after the first construction desig ...
on the
Shrewsbury Canal
The Shrewsbury Canal (or Shrewsbury and Newport Canal) was a canal in Shropshire, England. Authorised in 1793, the main line from Trench to Shrewsbury was fully open by 1797, but it remained isolated from the rest of the canal network until 183 ...
, sometimes described as the world's first ''large-scale'' navigable cast iron aqueduct. The oldest currently navigable cast-iron aqueduct is Outram's Stakes Aqueduct on the
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin in Huddersfield, to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whi ...
at
Stalybridge, built c1801 to replace an original, stone-built, four arch structure, which had been swept away in the floods of August 1799.
*
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct
The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct (; cy, Traphont Ddŵr Pontcysyllte) is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee in the Vale of Llangollen in northeast Wales.
The 18-arched stone and cast iron structure is for use ...
() carries the
Llangollen Canal
The Llangollen Canal ( cy, Camlas Llangollen) is a navigable canal crossing the border between England and Wales. The waterway links Llangollen in Denbighshire, north Wales, with Hurleston in south Cheshire, via the town of Ellesmere, Shropshir ...
over the River Dee valley in north
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
; it was designed by
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE, (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scot ...
and opened in 1805. The same canal, which includes a tunnelled section, crosses a second valley on the
Chirk Aqueduct
Chirk Aqueduct is a high and long navigable aqueduct that carries what is now the Llangollen Canal across the Ceiriog Valley near Chirk, on the England-Wales border, spanning the two countries.
History
The aqueduct was designed by civil engin ...
(1796–1801). This navigable canal also supplies water to the former borough of
Crewe and Nantwich.
* The
Union Canal in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
has many aqueducts, including the
Slateford Aqueduct that takes the canal over the
Water of Leith
The Water of Leith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Uisge Lìte'') is the main river flowing near central Edinburgh, Scotland, and flows into the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth.
Name
The name ''Leith'' may be of Britt ...
, the
Almond Aqueduct
The Almond Aqueduct, also known as the Lin's Mill Aqueduct, is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Union Canal over the River Almond in Scotland, west of Ratho, Edinburgh.
History
The aqueduct was built to a design by Hugh Baird, with advi ...
over the
River Almond at
Ratho, and the very impressive
Avon Aqueduct
The Avon Aqueduct is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Union Canal over the River Avon, near Linlithgow, Scotland.
History
The aqueduct was built to a design by Hugh Baird, with advice from Thomas Telford, in tandem with the aqueducts ...
over the
River Avon. The Avon is the second-longest aqueduct in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
().
* The
Agen aqueduct (1849) in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
is long and carries the
canal de Garonne across the
Garonne River.
* Sir
Arthur Cotton planned the aqueduct at
P. Gannavaram,
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
to cater for the needs of farmers in the
Konaseema area while he was constructing the
Dowleswaram barrage. Originally a non-navigable aqueduct was constructed in 1859 with a length of . In 2000, a new navigable aqueduct and road bridge was constructed across the
River Vynateya (a tributary of the
Godavari River) near Gannavaram, to facilitate the crossing of the
Gannavaram Canal and also to irrigate a farming land.
* The
Briare aqueduct (1896) near
Châtillon-sur-Loire,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, carries the
Canal latéral à la Loire
The Canal latéral à la Loire (, "canal parallel to the Loire") was constructed between 1827 and 1838 to connect the Canal de Briare at Briare and the Canal du Centre at Digoin, a distance of . It replaced the use of the river Loire, which wa ...
in a steel channel over the
Loire
The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...
River. At , it was the longest canal aqueduct in the world for a century.
* Following construction of the
M6 Toll Motorway the building of the
Lichfield Canal Aqueduct ran into construction difficulties. The UK parliament passed legislation preventing a road being built in the path of a canal being renovated without providing a tunnel or aqueduct for canal traffic to pass.
*
Barton Swing Aqueduct is a
swing bridge
A swing bridge (or swing span bridge) is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the swing span (turning span) can then pi ...
that carries the
Bridgewater Canal
The Bridgewater Canal connects Runcorn, Manchester and Leigh, in North West England. It was commissioned by Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, to transport coal from his mines in Worsley to Manchester. It was opened in 1761 from Wor ...
across the lower
Manchester Ship Canal. A section of the aqueduct rotates through 90 degrees to allow vessels to pass along the Ship Canal.
*
Veluwemeer Aqueduct is a 25-meter long navigable aqueduct located over
Veluwemeer
The Veluwemeer (Dutch) or Lake Veluwe is a bordering lake in the Netherlands, between the provinces of Flevoland on the west side and Gelderland on the east side. It is a narrow lake that stretches from south-west to north-east. South of Harderwijk ...
lake in
Harderwijk
Harderwijk (; Dutch Low Saxon: ) is a municipality and city of the Netherlands.
It is served by the Harderwijk railway station.
Its population centres are Harderwijk and Hierden.
Harderwijk is on the western boundary of the Veluwe. The south ...
, Netherlands. It was opened in 2002 and bypasses the
N302 road.
* An aqueduct near
Roelofarendsveen
Roelofarendsveen is a town in the west of the Netherlands. It is located in the municipality of Kaag en Braassem, South Holland, about 10 km east of Leiden.
History
The village was first mentioned in 1575 as "Roelifaerts Veen", and means "b ...
,
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
(1961) () carries the
Ringvaart
The Ringvaart (known in full as Ringvaart of the Haarlemmermeer Polder) is a canal in the province of North Holland, the Netherlands. The Ringvaart (Dutch meaning "ring canal") is a true circular canal surrounding the Haarlemmermeer polder an ...
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...
over the A4
highway
A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-acces ...
and the
HSL-Zuid
The HSL-Zuid ( nl, Hogesnelheidslijn Zuid, en, High-speed Line South), is a 125 kilometre-long (78 miles) Dutch high-speed railway line running between the Amsterdam metropolitan area and the Belgian border, with a branch to Breda, North ...
, which are situated on land below the level of the canal (and below sea level).
* Gouwe aqueduct, near
Gouda in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, carries the
Gouwe river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...
over the A12 highway, which is on land below the level of the river.
* The
Krabbersgat naviduct,
Houtribdijk
The Houtribdijk is a dam in the Netherlands, built between 1963 and 1975 as part of the Zuiderzee Works, which connects the cities of Lelystad and Enkhuizen. On the west side of the dike is the Markermeer and on the east is the IJsselmeer. The ...
near
Enkhuizen, The Netherlands, is the only aqueduct in the world that also operates as a lock.
* The
Magdeburg Water Bridge in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
(2003) connects the important
Mittellandkanal
The Mittelland Canal, also known as the Midland Canal, (german: Mittellandkanal, ) is a major canal in central Germany. It forms an important link in the waterway network of that country, providing the principal east-west inland waterway connec ...
over the river
Elbe
The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Re ...
to the
Elbe-Havel canal. Nearly long, it is the longest navigable aqueduct in the world.
Gallery
Boat_on_Monocacy_Aqueduct_C_and_O_Canal.jpg, Passenger (packet) boat on the Monocacy Aqueduct of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, abbreviated as the C&O Canal and occasionally called the "Grand Old Ditch," operated from 1831 until 1924 along the Potomac River between Washington, D.C. and Cumberland, Maryland. It replaced the Potomac Canal, ...
Conococheague_Aqueduct_Damage_in_1920_on_C_and_O_Canal.jpg, The wall of the Conococheague Creek aqueduct collapsed when a boat hit it, shutting down navigation until repaired.
Conococheague_Aqueduct_Damage_and_Boat_on_Chesapeake_and_Ohio_canal.jpg, The captain jumped off the boat before the wall went out, dumping the boat into the creek below. There were no casualties in this accident.
Boat_entering_lock_24_Rileys_lock.jpg, The Seneca Aqueduct was a lift lock as well as an aqueduct.
Morris_Canal_Aqueduct_over_Pompton_River_from_HABS.png, This wooden aqueduct carried the Morris Canal
The Morris Canal (1829–1924) was a common carrier anthracite coal canal across northern New Jersey that connected the two industrial canals at Easton, Pennsylvania across the Delaware River from its western terminus at Phillipsburg, New Jers ...
over the Pompton River.
See also
*
Aqueduct (disambiguation)
*
Canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...
*
List of canal aqueducts in Great Britain
This list of canal aqueducts in the United Kingdom covers aqueducts that have articles in Wikipedia. The actual number of canal aqueducts is much greater.
See also
* :Aqueducts in the United Kingdom
* Navigable aqueduct
*Canals of the Unit ...
*
Viaduct
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Navigable Aqueduct
Canals
Bridges by structural type