Stockport Viaduct, Railway viaduct in Stockport, England
The Stockport Viaduct is a brick railway viaduct across the Mersey Valley with 22 arches, a height of roughly 34 meters and a span of about 19 meters per arch. The structure carries four tracks of the main line between Manchester and London and forms one of the most recognizable landmarks in town.
Construction began in March 1839 and required around eleven million bricks, making the viaduct the largest in the world when finished in 1840. The works lasted less than two years and served to connect the region to the new British rail network.
The Grade II* listed railway bridge has linked the northwest of England with the south since the 19th century and still defines the town center as a built reminder of the industrial age. The novelist Gaskell mentioned the structure in literary works, while the painter Lowry often featured it in his paintings.
The viaduct is easily visible from many spots in the town center and can be viewed from the street or the river bank. Trains pass overhead constantly, so you can experience the function of the structure directly.
The M60 motorway runs through two arches of the viaduct and creates a rare intersection of Victorian and modern transport infrastructure. Both systems operate independently every day yet share the same built space.
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