Royal Albert Bridge

Royal Albert Bridge
Coordinates	50°24′27″N 4°12′12″W / 50.4076°N 4.2034°W / 50.4076; -4.2034
Carries	Railway
Crosses	River Tamar
Locale	Between Plymouth and Saltash, England
Maintained by	Network Rail
Characteristics
Design	Lenticular truss
Material	Iron
Total length	2,187.5 feet (666.8 m)
Width	16.83 feet (5.13 m) (inside piers)
Height	172 feet (52.4 m)
Longest span	2 of 455 feet (138.7 m)
No. of spans	19
Piers in water	3
Clearance below	100 feet (30 m)
History
Designer	I K Brunel
Construction start	May 1854
Construction end	April 1859
Opened	2 May 1859
Statistics
Listed Building – Grade I
Official name	Royal Albert Bridge and seventeen approach spans
Designated	17 January 1952
Reference no.	1159292
Location

The Royal Albert Bridge is a railway bridge which spans the River Tamar in England between Plymouth, Devon and Saltash, Cornwall. Its unique design consists of two 455-foot (138.7 m) lenticular iron trusses 100 feet (30.5 m) above the water, with conventional plate-girder approach spans. This gives it a total length of 2,187.5 feet (666.8 m). It carries the Cornish Main Line railway in and out of Cornwall. It is adjacent to the Tamar Bridge which opened in 1961 to carry the A38 road.

The Royal Albert Bridge was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.^[1] Surveying started in 1848 and construction commenced in 1854. The first main span was positioned in 1857 and the completed bridge was opened by Prince Albert on 2 May 1859. Brunel died later that year and his name was then placed above the portals at either end of the bridge as a memorial. During the 20th century the approach spans were replaced, and the main spans strengthened. It has attracted sightseers since its construction and has appeared in many paintings, photographs, guidebooks, postage stamps and on the UK £2 coin. Anniversary celebrations took place in 1959 and 2009.