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Maidenhead Railway Bridge
Maidenhead Railway Bridge, also known as Maidenhead Viaduct and The Sounding Arch, carries the Great Western Main Line (GWML) over the River Thames between Maidenhead, Berkshire and Taplow, Buckinghamshire, England. It is a single structure of two tall, wide red-brick arches buttressed by two over-land smaller arches. It crosses the river on the Maidenhead-Bray Reach, between Boulter's Lock and Bray Lock, and is near-centrally rooted in the downstream end of a very small island.
The Maidenhead Bridge was designed by the Great Western Railway Company engineer, the noted mechanical and civil engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It was completed in 1838, but not brought into use until 1 July 1839. While it was being constructed, the innovative low-rise arches of the structure attracted considerable criticism and controversy, relating to their alleged lack of stability.
As a result, the centring for the arches was left in place until its destruction during a heavy storm in late 1839, despite which the arches stayed up, effectively vindicating Brunel's design. During 1861, dual-gauge track was installed across the structure, allowing both broad gauge and standard gauge services to cross it. During the late 1890s, the bridge was widened on either side to allow the structure to carry four standard gauge tracks, a task which was supervised by the civil engineer Sir John Fowler, who placed a high level of importance upon preserving the original design and appearance of the bridge.
Today, the Maidenhead Bridge forms a key crossing along the eastern section of the Great Western Main Line, allowing trains to travel to and from the line's terminus in the capital, London Paddington station. During the 2010s, the tracks across the structure were provided with overhead line equipment and associated infrastructure, to allow electric trains to use the route. The Maidenhead Bridge features in Rain, Steam and Speed – The Great Western Railway, painted by J. M. W. Turner during 1844, which is now in the National Gallery, London.
The bridge is approximate to the finish line of an annual day of rowing races, known as the Maidenhead Regatta. The Thames towpath passes directly under the right-hand arch (facing upstream), which is also known as the "Sounding Arch", due to its spectacular echo. During July 2012, the bridge was upgraded to a Grade I listed structure in light of its historical importance. To this day, the arches of the structure remain the flattest ever constructed.
During the 1830s, the famed mechanical and civil engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel developed a plan for a 118-mile-long (190 km) railway running on an east–west alignment in between the key cities of London and Bristol. The line, which became known as the Great Western Railway, displayed exceptional attention to maintaining either level ground, or gentle gradients of no greater than 1 in 1000, on the majority of the route. A key river crossing of the railway occurred between Maidenhead, Berkshire, and Taplow, Buckinghamshire, where the line would cross over the Thames, and Brunel himself undertook the design for that structure.
The building of a bridge over the Thames at that location had to make provision for the necessary navigational clearance, so as not to unduly hinder the river shipping. However, that clearance requirement, when combined with Brunel's desire to maintain a gentle gradient of 1 in 1,320 for the railway lines, posed some problems for the bridge's design. Brunel was very averse to allowing any compromise of the gradient which had been set for the whole route, because he believed it would negatively affect both passenger comfort and the maximum speeds of trains.
The first plan devised by Brunel for the river crossing was for the building of triple-arch viaduct at the site, but he chose to discard that in favour of the design that was subsequently built and is still in use today. According to author Paul Clements, the design selected by Brunel had been directly inspired by earlier experiments performed by his father, Marc Brunel, during 1832, which Isambard had financed. Isambard employed calculus principles in the designing of the bridge's critical semi-elliptical arches which supported the structure. In common with the design of the other large bridges along the line, Brunel achieved a reduction in the forces acting through the brickwork via the adoption of internal longitudinal walls and voids. They served to lighten the superstructure above the arches, as well as reducing the overall weight of the bridge.
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Maidenhead Railway Bridge
Maidenhead Railway Bridge, also known as Maidenhead Viaduct and The Sounding Arch, carries the Great Western Main Line (GWML) over the River Thames between Maidenhead, Berkshire and Taplow, Buckinghamshire, England. It is a single structure of two tall, wide red-brick arches buttressed by two over-land smaller arches. It crosses the river on the Maidenhead-Bray Reach, between Boulter's Lock and Bray Lock, and is near-centrally rooted in the downstream end of a very small island.
The Maidenhead Bridge was designed by the Great Western Railway Company engineer, the noted mechanical and civil engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It was completed in 1838, but not brought into use until 1 July 1839. While it was being constructed, the innovative low-rise arches of the structure attracted considerable criticism and controversy, relating to their alleged lack of stability.
As a result, the centring for the arches was left in place until its destruction during a heavy storm in late 1839, despite which the arches stayed up, effectively vindicating Brunel's design. During 1861, dual-gauge track was installed across the structure, allowing both broad gauge and standard gauge services to cross it. During the late 1890s, the bridge was widened on either side to allow the structure to carry four standard gauge tracks, a task which was supervised by the civil engineer Sir John Fowler, who placed a high level of importance upon preserving the original design and appearance of the bridge.
Today, the Maidenhead Bridge forms a key crossing along the eastern section of the Great Western Main Line, allowing trains to travel to and from the line's terminus in the capital, London Paddington station. During the 2010s, the tracks across the structure were provided with overhead line equipment and associated infrastructure, to allow electric trains to use the route. The Maidenhead Bridge features in Rain, Steam and Speed – The Great Western Railway, painted by J. M. W. Turner during 1844, which is now in the National Gallery, London.
The bridge is approximate to the finish line of an annual day of rowing races, known as the Maidenhead Regatta. The Thames towpath passes directly under the right-hand arch (facing upstream), which is also known as the "Sounding Arch", due to its spectacular echo. During July 2012, the bridge was upgraded to a Grade I listed structure in light of its historical importance. To this day, the arches of the structure remain the flattest ever constructed.
During the 1830s, the famed mechanical and civil engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel developed a plan for a 118-mile-long (190 km) railway running on an east–west alignment in between the key cities of London and Bristol. The line, which became known as the Great Western Railway, displayed exceptional attention to maintaining either level ground, or gentle gradients of no greater than 1 in 1000, on the majority of the route. A key river crossing of the railway occurred between Maidenhead, Berkshire, and Taplow, Buckinghamshire, where the line would cross over the Thames, and Brunel himself undertook the design for that structure.
The building of a bridge over the Thames at that location had to make provision for the necessary navigational clearance, so as not to unduly hinder the river shipping. However, that clearance requirement, when combined with Brunel's desire to maintain a gentle gradient of 1 in 1,320 for the railway lines, posed some problems for the bridge's design. Brunel was very averse to allowing any compromise of the gradient which had been set for the whole route, because he believed it would negatively affect both passenger comfort and the maximum speeds of trains.
The first plan devised by Brunel for the river crossing was for the building of triple-arch viaduct at the site, but he chose to discard that in favour of the design that was subsequently built and is still in use today. According to author Paul Clements, the design selected by Brunel had been directly inspired by earlier experiments performed by his father, Marc Brunel, during 1832, which Isambard had financed. Isambard employed calculus principles in the designing of the bridge's critical semi-elliptical arches which supported the structure. In common with the design of the other large bridges along the line, Brunel achieved a reduction in the forces acting through the brickwork via the adoption of internal longitudinal walls and voids. They served to lighten the superstructure above the arches, as well as reducing the overall weight of the bridge.