Coordinates: 51.4900°N 0.

0549°W

London Bridge – Greenwich Railway Viaduct

The London Bridge – Greenwich Railway Viaduct consists of a
series of nineteen brick railway viaducts linked by road bridges
between London Bridge railway station and Deptford Creek,
which together make a single structure 3.45 miles (5.55  km) in
length. The structure carries the former London and Greenwich
Railway line and consists of 851 semi-circular arches and 27 skew
arches or road bridges. It is the longest run of arches in Britain,[1] It
is also one of the oldest railway viaducts in the world, and the
earliest example of an entirely elevated railway line. It was built
between 1834 and 1836. The original viaduct had been widened The viaduct near Bermondsey
for 1.95 miles (3.14 km) of its length between Corbett's Lane and church in 1836
London Bridge on the south side to accommodate the trains of the
London and Croydon Railway and London and Brighton Railway,
in 1842 and also for 2.65 miles (4.26 km) on the north side to accommodate the South Eastern Railway
main line in 1850.[2] It is a Grade II listed structure.[3]

Contents
History
Original viaduct
Corbett's Lane Junction
Southern widening
Northern widening
Use of the arches
Gallery
See also
References
Bibliography

History
The idea of a railway from London to Greenwich built on a viaduct, came from engineer Colonel George
Thomas Landmann, and entrepreneur George Walter, and a company was floated on 25 November 1831,
which obtained Parliamentary approval in 1833. The line was elevated to avoid numerous level crossings
over the many streets which were already appearing in the south of London.[4] The intention had been for
the line to descend to ground level after crossing the Grand Surrey Canal but this was opposed by
Parliament, and so it remained elevated as far as Deptford Creek on the River Ravensbourne, where there
was a bascule bridge.
Original viaduct

The contractor was Hugh McIntosh, who used sixty million bricks
to construct the viaduct, with 400 navvies using more than 100,000
per day, creating a shortage for other building activities in
London.[1] They were all made at Sittingbourne and transported to
the site by barge.[5] Work started on the foundations in February
1834, and in places they had to dig down 24 feet to get a firm
foundation for the arches.[6] The first experimental trains were run
in 1835. The structure was not however completed until December The viaduct at London Bridge railway
1836, due to delays in obtaining materials for the Bermondsey station in 1836.
Street bridge near to London Bridge. As originally constructed the
viaduct included a 'pedestrian boulevard' where users could walk
for a penny toll, but this was quickly replaced by an additional running line.[7] The viaduct included the
stations of London Bridge, Spa Road, Bermondsey (closed 1915) and Deptford. A further station on top of
the viaduct at Southwark Park was opened in 1902, but also closed in 1915.

Corbett's Lane Junction

During 1838 and 1839 the London and Croydon Railway (L&CR)
constructed a junction with the viaduct leading to its own 800-foot
(240  m) viaduct shortly after Corbett's Lane, Deptford,[8] and
thereafter shared the L&GR route to London Bridge. 'Corbett's
Lane Junction' became one of the first major railway junctions in
the world'.[9] A 'policeman' was stationed at the junction to control
movements of the trains, who was soon afterwards situated on a
wooden tower on the viaduct to give him better visibility. The
'Corbett's lane lighthouse', as it was known, was the precursor of A panoramic view from New Cross
the modern signal box. station showing the viaduct and
Corbett's Lane Junction in the
background, c.1840.
Southern widening

The L&CR lines into London were also shared with the London and Brighton Railway from 1841 and
were due to do so with the South Eastern Railway (SER) from 1842. During 1841 it became obvious that
the original viaduct would be inadequate to share the growing traffic of four railway companies, and so the
L&GR constructed a second adjoining viaduct on the south side of the original as far as Corbett's Lane.[8]
This provided two further tracks, which together with the southern viaduct were later leased by the London
Brighton and South Coast Railway, the successor to both the L&CR and the L&BR.

Northern widening

The SER leased the L&GR from 1845, and in 1847 obtained powers to widen the viaduct still further with
the addition of two further lines for 2.65 miles (4.26  km) on the north side to accommodate the South
Eastern Railway main line. This work was completed by 1850.[2] The SER later constructed a link from
this structure leading to its Bricklayers Arms branch line.

Use of the arches

The London and Greenwich Railway directors originally envisaged
using the arches for low cost housing, but were soon dissuaded of
the plan. The arches are extensively used for light engineering
workshops, scrap dealers, and lockups. In recent years some of the
arches have been used for fashionable restaurants and
nightclubs.[10]

Gallery A 1908 rail map of the surrounding

area. The viaduct supports the pink

line from London Bridge to Deptford

Creek

The western end of Bermondsey Street

the viaduct at bridge, the final part
London Bridge of the structure to be
railway station. completed.

The Spa Road Viaducts on On top of the viaduct A close-up of an

railway station was Landmann Way. showing (r to l) the arch at Raymouth
built into the viaduct. Brighton Main Line, Road showing the
the derelict three parallel
Bricklayers Arms viaducts.
branch, the South
Eastern Main Line
and the Greenwich
line.


John Bull Arch, Railway bridge over The viaduct at Deptford Creek lift
Southwark Park Edward Street, SE8. Deptford. bridge, the eastern
Road, Rotherhithe, end of the viaduct.
London, SE16.

See also
List of railway bridges and viaducts in the United Kingdom

References
1. Wolmar 2007, p. 58.
2. Nock 1961, pp. 24 & 29.
3. "Name: RAILWAY VIADUCT EXTENDING FROM PLATFORMS OF GREENWICH
RAILWAY STATION TO DEPTFORD CREEK List entry Number: 1253722" (https://historice
ngland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1253722). Historic England. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
4. Turner 1977, pp. 40–1.
5. Turner 1977, p. 41.
6. Gordon 1910, p. 187.
7. Wolmar 2007, p. 59.
8. Turner 1977, p. 47.
9. Nock 1961, p. 24.
10. Wolmar 2007, pp. 58 & 322.

Bibliography
Gordon, W.J. (1910). Our home railways. Part 5 The South Eastern and Chatham. London:
Frederick Warne.
Nock, O.S. (1961). The South Eastern and Chatham Railway. London: Ian Allan.
Turner, John Howard (1977). The London Brighton and South Coast Railway 1 Origins and
Formation. Batsford. ISBN 0-7134-0275-X.
Wolmar, Christian (2007). Fire and steam: a new history of the railways in Britain. London:
Atlantic Books. ISBN 978-1-84354-629-0.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=London_Bridge_–

_Greenwich_Railway_Viaduct&oldid=1078916080"
This page was last edited on 24 March 2022, at 00:47 (UTC).

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0;

additional terms may apply. By
using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the
Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.