Monkwearmouth Railway Bridge

Monkwearmouth Railway Bridge
Monkwearmouth Railway Bridge
	Monkwearmouth Bridge (left), Wearmouth Bridge (right), 2006
Coordinates	54°54′33″N 1°22′59″W / 54.9093°N 1.3831°W
OS grid reference	NZ396573
Carries	Durham Coast Line; Tyne and Wear Metro;
Crosses	River Wear
Locale	Wearside
Official name	Monkwearmouth Bridge
Other name(s)	Wearmouth Railway Bridge; Sunderland Railway Bridge;
Owner	Network Rail
Maintained by	Network Rail
Heritage status	Grade II listed
Network Rail Bridge ID	LEN3-260
Preceded by	Queen Alexandra Bridge
Followed by	Wearmouth Bridge
Characteristics
Design	Vierendeel truss bowstring arch
Material	Wrought iron
Longest span	300 ft (91 m)
Clearance below	86 ft (26 m)
Rail characteristics
No. of tracks	2
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Electrified	1500V DC
History
Designer	Thomas Elliot Harrison
Constructed by	Hawks, Crawshay and Sons
Fabrication by	John Waddell & Sons
Opened	1879
Location

Monkwearmouth Railway Bridge (officially Monkwearmouth Bridge, also called Wearmouth Railway Bridge or Sunderland Railway Bridge) is a railway bridge built in 1879, crossing the River Wear at Sunderland and Monkwearmouth. The bridge lies adjacent to and upstream of the Wearmouth Road Bridge.

Originally built as part of the Monkwearmouth Junction Line, it provided the first direct railway link between Newcastle and Sunderland. The bridge is now used by Tyne and Wear Metro and Durham Coast Line services.