Connel Bridge
Encyclopedia
Cantilever bridge
A cantilever bridge is a bridge built using cantilevers, structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end. For small footbridges, the cantilevers may be simple beams; however, large cantilever bridges designed to handle road or rail traffic use trusses built from...
that spans Loch Etive
Loch Etive
Loch Etive is a 30 km sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It reaches the sea at Connel, 5 km north of Oban. It measures 31.6 km in length and from 1.2 km to in width...
at Connel
Connel
Connel is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is situated on the southern shore of Loch Etive. The Lusragan Burn flows through the village and into the loch....
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The bridge takes the A828 road
A828 road
The A828 road is a primary route along the western coast of ScotlandAt its northern end the A828 meets the A82 at South Ballachulish and it runs to a junction with the A85 at Connel; the total length being some . It passes through Highland and Argyll and Bute council areas...
across the narrowest part of the loch, at the Falls of Lora
Falls of Lora
The Falls of Lora is a tidal race which forms at the mouth of Loch Etive when a particularly high tide runs out from the loch. They form white water rapids for two to five days either side of the spring tides....
.
Construction
Arch
An arch is a structure that spans a space and supports a load. Arches appeared as early as the 2nd millennium BC in Mesopotamian brick architecture and their systematic use started with the Ancient Romans who were the first to apply the technique to a wide range of structures.-Technical aspects:The...
es.
Completed on 9 May 1903, the bridge was built by Arrol's Bridge and Roof Company
Sir William Arrol & Co.
Sir William Arrol & Co. was a leading Scottish civil engineering business founded by William Arrol and based in Glasgow. It built some of the most famous bridges in the United Kingdom including the Forth Bridge and Tower Bridge in London.-Early history:...
. It was originally built to carry the Ballachulish
Ballachulish
The village of Ballachulish in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, is centred around former slate quarries. The name Ballachulish was more correctly applied to the area now called North Ballachulish, to the north of Loch Leven, but was usurped for the quarry villages at East Laroch and West Laroch,...
branch of the Callander and Oban Railway
Callander and Oban Railway
The Callander and Oban Railway company was formed in 1864 with the objective of linking Callander, Scotland to the west coast port of Oban over challenging terrain, particularly at Glen Ogle and the Pass of Brander at Loch Awe. Callander had been reached in 1858 by the Dunblane, Doune and Callander...
, which opened on 20 August 1903. Nearly 2600 tons of steel was used in its construction and it cost almost £43,000 to build.
Road and rail usage
Originally, the bridge carried just the railway (a single trackSingle track (rail)
A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....
). In 1909, however, an additional train service started running between Connel Ferry station
Connel Ferry railway station
Connel Ferry railway station is a railway station serving the village of Connel in western Scotland. This station is on the Oban branch of the West Highland Line, originally part of the Callander and Oban Railway.- Facilities :...
and on which road vehicles could be transported over the bridge. A single car was carried on a wagon hauled by a charabanc
Charabanc
A charabanc or "char-à-banc" is a type of horse-drawn vehicle or early motor coach, usually open-topped, common in Britain during the early part of the 20th century. It was especially popular for sight-seeing or "works outings" to the country or the seaside, organised by businesses once a year...
that had been adapted to run on rails at St. Rollox railway works
St. Rollox railway works
St. Rollox Locomotive Works and St Rollox Carriage and Wagon Works were built in 1856 in Springburn, an area in the north-east of Glasgow, for the Caledonian Railway, moving away from their works at Greenock...
in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
. This service also called at North Connel station
North Connel railway station
North Connel was a railway station located in North Connel, Argyll and Bute, on the north shore of Loch Etive. Its location was at the north end of Connel Bridge.- History :...
at the north end of the bridge.
In 1914, a roadway was added to the bridge, alongside the railway line. The road occupied the western side of the bridge, with the railway running parallel immediately to the east. Due to the close proximity of road and railway, road traffic and trains were not permitted on the bridge at the same time and the bridge was effectively operated as an extended level crossing
Level crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
with gates. The road crossed to the opposite side of the railway at the north end of the bridge. A toll
Toll bridge
A toll bridge is a bridge over which traffic may pass upon payment of a toll, or fee.- History :The practice of collecting tolls on bridges probably harks back to the days of ferry crossings where people paid a fee to be ferried across stretches of water. As boats became impractical to carry large...
was payable by road users.
After the branch line closed in 1966, the bridge was converted for the exclusive use of road vehicles and pedestrians, and the toll was removed. Despite the railway track having been removed, the roadway is not wide enough for vehicles to pass. Traffic lights are installed at each end of the bridge to enforce one-way traffic.
The steel arches at each end of the bridge have been raised after being struck by overheight vehicles. The current height limit for vehicles using the bridge is 4.2 metres (13.8 ft).
Filming
Connel Bridge appears in the 1981 filmFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
Eye of the Needle
Eye of the Needle (film)
Eye of the Needle is a 1981 film directed by Richard Marquand, based on the novel of the same title by Ken Follett, and starring Donald Sutherland...
, starring Donald Sutherland
Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland, OC is a Canadian actor with a film career spanning nearly 50 years. Some of Sutherland's more notable movie roles included offbeat warriors in such war movies as The Dirty Dozen, , MASH , and Kelly's Heroes , as well as in such popular films as Klute, Invasion of the...
. In the film, Sutherland's character is seen riding a stolen motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
across the bridge, which he then disposes of by pushing it down the embankment at the north end of the bridge after it runs out of fuel.