The Weaver Viaduct, in the north of Cheshire on the M56, is one of the longest concrete

viaducts 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 va ...

on the British motorway network.

History

It was built as part of the first section of the M56 North Cheshire Motorway, also initially known as the Cheshire East-West Motorway, five miles from junctions 14

Hapsford Hapsford is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Dunham-on-the-Hill and Hapsford, in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is located on the A5117 road, with He ...

Interchange to 12 at the A557. The contract was given in early March 1968, to be finished by September 1970, to the Christiani- Shand consortium (its headquarters were at Romney House, on

Marsham Street Marsham Street is a street in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is approximately one mile in length and runs south from Great Peter Street near Victoria Street and Parliament Square. Description Marsham Street bisects Horseferry ...

in London) for £3,146,387. M56 motorway viaduct - geograph

Design

It was designed from 1964-67. It was designed by Husband and Company Consulting Engineers of

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

Construction

Work started on the viaduct on 1 April 1968. Work began on the eight-mile motorway in December 1968. The bridge crosses a flood plain. The foundations had 2,376 reinforced concrete piles. Thirty two 125-foot concrete 100-tonne beams were put into place in July 1970; the concrete beams were made by Matthews & Mumby of Windmill Lane,

Denton, Greater Manchester Denton is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, five miles (8 km) east of Manchester city centre. Historically part of Lancashire, it had a population of 36,591 at the 2011 Census. History Toponymy Denton probably derives ...

. The project manager for Christiani-Shand was Mr A.K. Robertson. 31-year-old Harry Russon was killed instantly on the bridge construction on Wednesday 6 August 1969. The construction of the five-mile motorway was completed in December 1970. The five-mile motorway opened for traffic at 11am on Sunday 21 February 1971; the viaduct would open with hard shoulders; the

Thelwall Viaduct The Thelwall Viaduct () is a steel composite girder viaduct in Lymm, Warrington, England. It carries the M6 motorway across the Manchester Ship Canal and the River Mersey. It is between junctions 20 and 21 of the M6, the former being also know ...

on the M6 was not originally built with a

hard shoulder A shoulder, hard shoulder (British) or breakdown lane, is an emergency stopping lane by the verge of a road or motorway, on the right side in countries which drive on the right, and on the left side in countries which drive on the left. Many wide ...

. The section to

Preston Brook Preston Brook is a village and civil parish in the borough of Halton, a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Cheshire in North West England. It is located to the south-east of Runcorn and south-west of Warrington, adjacent to the M5 ...

at junction 11 opened on Thursday 23 September 1971.''Cheshire Observer'' Friday 19 February 1971, page 25

Structure

Due to its position, on the eastern edge of the exposed

Cheshire Plain The Cheshire Plain is a relatively flat expanse of lowland within the county of Cheshire in North West England but extending south into Shropshire. It extends from the Mersey Valley in the north to the Shropshire Hills in the south, bounded b ...

, there can be high

crosswind A crosswind is any wind that has a perpendicular component to the line or direction of travel. This affects the aerodynamics of many forms of transport. Moving non-parallel to the wind's direction creates a crosswind component on the object and th ...

s over the bridge, and the bridge may be closed as a result. Many high-sided vehicles have had accidents on the bridge. It has a 222 ft span over the River Weaver and a 125 ft span over the Weaver Navigation. There are 30 approach spans of 90 ft each.

References

{{reflist

External links

History
1970 establishments in England Bridges completed in 1970 Bridges in Cheshire Cheshire West and Chester Concrete bridges in the United Kingdom M56 motorway Motorway bridges in England