Victoria Bridge, also known as the Nepean River Bridge, is a wrought iron girder bridge which crosses the Nepean River

Nepean River

The Nepean River is a river in the coastal region of New South Wales, Australia.The headwaters of the Nepean River rise near Robertson, about 100 kilometres south of Sydney and about 15 kilometres from the coast. The river flows north in an unpopulated water catchment area into Nepean Dam, which...

 in the western suburb of Penrith

Penrith, New South Wales

Penrith is a suburb in western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Penrith is located west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area of the City of Penrith...

 in Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It carries the Great Western Highway

Great Western Highway

The Great Western Highway is a highway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs 210 km from Sydney to Bathurst.Starting as Broadway at the intersection of City Road near the fringe of the Sydney CBD, and becoming Parramatta Road to Parramatta itself, the Great Western Highway heads due west from...

It replaces a punt service and timber bridge which was twice destroyed by floods.
Designed by Engineer in Chief of Railways, John Whitton

John Whitton

John Whitton was appointed Engineer-in-Charge for the New South Wales Railways, Australia, in January 1867. Over the next 32 years he completed 2811 miles of railway around NSW and Victoria...

, construction began in 1864 and was completed in 1867. Originally it took one railway line and a road across the river, however in 1907 another bridge was constructed a few metres to the north which henceforth took two railway lines across the river, and the original bridge reverted to road and pedestrian use only.

The bridge is significant in the development of the colony of NSW as it allowed the railway, which previously terminated at Penrith, to reach the Blue Mountains and beyond, as well as providing continuous road passage across the river using the Great Western Highway.

Today the bridge's significance as a road route to the Blue Mountains is diminished, as the Great Western Highway no longer leads to the Blue Mountains on its former alignment. The M4 Western Motorway

M4 Western Motorway

The M4 Western Motorway,, is a motorway in central Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

 now serves as the road route into the mountains where it joins the Great Western Highway at Lapstone Hill. Nevertheless, the bridge maintains its significance as a local tourist attraction and a centrepiece to sporting events along the Nepean River, as well as continuing to serve as vital link between the suburbs west of the Nepean, such as Emu Plains, and the major suburban centre of Penrith. The 1907 railway bridge however, still takes the western railway line over the river and to the Blue Mountains.

The 1867 bridge is similar in design to the older Menangle Railway Bridge over the Nepean River at Menangle

Menangle, New South Wales

Menangle is a village in the Macarthur Region of New South Wales, Australia.-Location:Menangle is part of the Wollondilly Shire. At the 2006 census, Menangle had a population of 327 people.-History:...

, southwest of Sydney. The Menangle bridge, however, has always been used only for rail traffic, and as of 2007 is still in use by the railway.