Flintshire Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Flintshire Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge
spanning the Dee Estuary
in North Wales
. The bridge links Flint
and Connah's Quay
to the north shore of the River Dee. The bridge cost £55million to construct. This cost was met by the then Welsh Office
and in the future, maintenance costs are expected to be the responsibility of the local authority Flintshire County Council
.
The bridge was officially opened in 1998 by Queen Elizabeth II
. It carries part of the A548 road and has been nicknamed 'the bridge to nowhere' by locals.
It is the largest asymmetric cable-stayed bridge in the whole of Britain.
The Welsh Assembly Government is now considering the Flintshire Bridge as an alternative route for a major road expansion through the county, after plans to expand the A494 in Deeside were scrapped in March 2008.
Cable-stayed bridge
A cable-stayed bridge is a bridge that consists of one or more columns , with cables supporting the bridge deck....
spanning the Dee Estuary
Dee Estuary
The Dee Estuary is a large estuary by means of which the River Dee flows into Liverpool Bay. The estuary starts near Shotton after a five miles 'canalised' section and the river soon swells to be several miles wide forming the boundary between the Wirral Peninsula in north-west England and...
in North Wales
North Wales
North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...
. The bridge links Flint
Flint, Flintshire
Flint is a town in Flintshire, North Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Dee. It was the county town of the historic county of Flintshire and today is the third largest town in Flintshire. According to the 2001 Census the population of the community of Flint was 12,804...
and Connah's Quay
Connah's Quay
Connah's Quay is the largest town in Flintshire, North Wales, lying on the River Dee, near the border with England. It can be accessed by road from the A550, by rail from the nearby Shotton station and also lies on the National Cycle Network Route 5. It is situated near the region's industrial...
to the north shore of the River Dee. The bridge cost £55million to construct. This cost was met by the then Welsh Office
Welsh Office
The Welsh Office was a department in the Government of the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Wales. It was established in April 1965 to execute government policy in Wales, and was headed by the Secretary of State for Wales, a post which had been created in October 1964...
and in the future, maintenance costs are expected to be the responsibility of the local authority Flintshire County Council
Flintshire County Council
Flintshire County Council is the governing body of the principal area of Flintshire , one of the administrative subdivisions of Wales.-Political makeup:...
.
The bridge was officially opened in 1998 by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
. It carries part of the A548 road and has been nicknamed 'the bridge to nowhere' by locals.
It is the largest asymmetric cable-stayed bridge in the whole of Britain.
The Welsh Assembly Government is now considering the Flintshire Bridge as an alternative route for a major road expansion through the county, after plans to expand the A494 in Deeside were scrapped in March 2008.