♥Teesside
We can do Bridges us like!
“Made in Middlesbrough”
Sydney (Harbour Bridge), 1932 - Present day
Even the fat Geordie bloke outside Greggs couldn't deny it..."Why aye man, those Smoggies can reet make a canny bridge like" he commented, looking up at the (Teesside built) Tyne Bridge and spitting corned beef n onion down his faded 1976 Newcastle shirt. To be honest, it could have been a well washed 2011 shirt...they all look the same to me!
If there's one thing us Smoggy's are good at (apart from drinking, eating parmos, art, music, havin' a laff and sex) it's building bridges. Some of the most famous bridges in the world were either built, designed or made with steel from this beautiful land. Here's a quick run down of our river crossing exploits:
Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney, Australia
Probably THE most famous Teesside bridge is the one that spans Australia's Sydney Harbour. Opened in 1932, it was designed and built by Dorman Long and provided a design model for the lesser Tyne Bridge (see below).
On top of that, the bridges structure comprises of 80% Teesside steel...making it a true icon of Teesside's engineering greatness!
Victoria Falls Bridge, Zimbabwe
Constructed by Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company and joining Zambia and Zimbabwe, the Victoria Falls Bridge took just 14 months to build and was completed in 1905.
The bridge is 198 metres long, with a main arch spanning 156.5 metres, and has a height of 128 metres above the lower water mark of the river in the gorge below!
Storstrøm Bridge, Denmark
Another Dorman Long masterpiece, Storstrøm Bridge in Denmark is 3199 metres long and 9 metres wide and was opened by King Christian X on September 26, 1937. Carrying road and rail it crosses Storstrømmen, a sea channel and connects the islands of Falster and Masnedø.
Tyne Bridge, Somewhere in Scotland I believe...
Officially opened on 10 October 1928 by King George V, The Tyne Bridge is a symbol of all that is Geordiness - shame this was another Dorman Long of Middlesbrough product really! Amazingly, in a BBC artice they claim that "The Tyne Bridge is one of the greatest symbols of Tyneside’s industrial pride and engineering prowess" and go on to claim "the bridge has come to symbolise all that is best about the Tyneside industrial tradition and its history of engineering and innovation." These statements may be a little more true if the word Tyneside was replaced with Teesside! Still, can't blame them for being jealous can ya?
This is just a small selection of many many bridges around the world that have been designed and/or built on Teesside and there are many others built with Teesside steel. This is in addition to many other worldwide structures...but perhaps that's for a different article!