The Merivale Bridge is a

double track A double-track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single-track railway where trains in both directions share the same track. Overview In the earliest days of railways in the United Kingdom, most li ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

bridge crossing the

Brisbane River The Brisbane River (Turrbal language, Turrbal: ) is the longest river in South East Queensland, Australia. It flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the ...

. It crosses the Milton Reach of the river, located in between the

Go Between Bridge The Go Between Bridge, formerly known as the Hale Street Link, is a toll bridge for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists over the Brisbane River in inner-city Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The bridge connects Merivale and Cordelia Streets in ...

and the

William Jolly Bridge The William Jolly Bridge is a heritage-listed road bridge over the Brisbane River between North Quay, Brisbane, North Quay in the Brisbane central business district and Grey Street in South Brisbane, within City of Brisbane, Queensland, Austra ...

. Exclusively a

crossing, it is located between the stations of

South Brisbane South Brisbane is an inner southern suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , South Brisbane had a population of 14,292 people. Geography South Brisbane is on the southern bank of the Brisbane River, bounded to the nor ...

and Roma Street, linking the northern and southern elements of the

Queensland Rail City network Railways in South East Queensland consist of a large passenger and freight rail network centred on Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Suburban and interurban passenger rail services are operated by Queensland Rai ...

. The Merivale Bridge is the only inner-city rail crossing in Brisbane. By 2016 it was expected to be over capacity, leading the Queensland Government to announce the

Cross River Rail Cross River Rail (CRR) is an Rapid transit, underground heavy rail project currently under construction in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The project will see the development of a new rail line underneath the Brisbane River, together with th ...

project. The Merivale Bridge opened on 18 November 1978 by

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

Joh Bjelke-Petersen Sir Johannes Bjelke-Petersen (13 January 191123 April 2005) was an Australian politician and farmer who served as premier of Queensland between 1968 and 1987, for almost 20 years, as state leader of the National Party (earlier known as the C ...

. At the opening with 850 guests, the Premier, described the occasion as "the start of the second stage in the history of Queensland Railways".''Network'' Published by the Railways of Australia Committee February, 1979 pp7-11 It formed a more direct route into the city for Brisbane's southern system suburban trains than the existing route via Corinda. Since 1986 it also has carried the standard gauge line from

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. It was designed by Cameron McNamara Pty Ltd (consulting engineers) and was fabricated and erected by Transfield. The bridge has been recognised with a number of awards. In 1980 it was named the most outstanding engineering project from the Association of Consulting Engineers of Australia. Judges appreciated the combination of aesthetics and functionality. It also won the 1979 Steel Award.

History

It had taken almost a century to get Brisbane's north and south rail networks joined by a bridge over the

. As far back as 1885, the then Engineer-in-Chief for the Southern Division Railways arranged for the trial rail survey being done in

to be extended across the river to the main western line near Countess Street. In 1889, he arranged to have levels taken for alternative routes to Roma Street tunnel via Herschel Street, and to

Central station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

via a direct route between

Turbot The turbot ( ) ''Scophthalmus maximus'' is a relatively large species of flatfish in the family Scophthalmidae. It is a demersal fish native to marine or brackish waters of the Northeast Atlantic, Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. It is a ...

and

Ann Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie and Ana. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in ...

Streets. The Herschel Street route was recommended for adoption, and plans subsequently prepared. However the government decided not to proceed and requested an alternative survey, but that too was held over. Worried at losing trade to central city businesses, the merchants of South Brisbane fought against the bridge. In 1913, the then Premier requested that plans for a direct route through Ann Street to Albert Square (now

King George Square King George Square is a town square, public square located between Adelaide Street, Brisbane, Adelaide Street and Ann Street, Brisbane, Ann Street (and between two sections of Albert Street, Brisbane, Albert Street) in Brisbane, Queensland, A ...

) be put in hand. In 1919, the matter was raised again, but after further pressure from antilobbyists, was once more allowed to lapse. In 1950, the issue was raised in connection with proposals to electrify the Brisbane suburban network. Surveys and plans were finalised in 1954, and in 1955 the State Government announced its decision to proceed with the construction and initiated land resumptions. However, financial constraints again caused a deferment. This study was submitted to the Government in 1970. It recommended that the crossing should follow the route, as surveyed in 1890. The Queensland State Cabinet approved the bridge in October 1971. In 1975, a contract was let to Transfield for the construction of the bridge and the line into South Brisbane station. The first pile was driven on 21 August 1975. The bridge took a period of three years and three months to be built. The Merivale Bridge opened on 18 November 1978 by

. At the opening with 850 guests, the Premier, described the occasion as "the start of the second stage in the history of Queensland Railways". The first train to use the train was Diesel electric locomotive no. 2422. The bridge was named after Merivale Street in South Brisbane with which the bridge is aligned. The bridge was refurbished in 2016. State Library of Queensland holds John Christsen Merivale Bridge collection which contains 370 chronological photographs of the construction of the bridge, as well as documents and research papers relating to the bridge

References

External links

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31653 Merivale Bridge Cross River Rail Link opening photographs

State Library of Queensland State Library of Queensland (State Library) is the state public reference and research library of Queensland, Australia, operated by the Government of Queensland, state government. The Library is governed by the Library Board of Queensland, whi ...

{{Australian railway bridges, state=autocollapse Bridges completed in 1978 Bridges in Brisbane Bridges over the Brisbane River Railway bridges in Queensland Steel bridges in Australia Through arch bridges 1978 establishments in Australia