Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge, Cleveland

Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge, one of Teeside’s best-known landmarks, was built in 1911 to provide a more efficient means of transport for workers crossing the Tees every day. Designed as a cantilever with three spans, cars and pedestrians are transported in a cradle suspended beneath the main span, 160 ft above the water.

The bridge is one of only three such structures left in Britain (the others are at Warrington and Newport, Gwent). Globally, there are only 11 transporter bridges left and, with a total span of 259.3 metres, Middlesbrough’s is the longest.

The conservation plan, commissioned by Middlesbrough Council and drawn up by AHP and Manchester-based architects Lloyd Evans Prichard, charted the origins of the bridge by using primary and secondary sources in Middlesbrough and London. Among these was a brochure from the opening ceremony, presided over by Prince Arthur of Connaught. AHP’s work also assessed the significance of the bridge using national and international comparisons, and provided specialist information about who built it, and how it was constructed.

As well as an historic understanding and significance assessment, conservation plans provide a framework of issues affecting a historic site, and formulate a set of policies designed to assist in its restoration. The transporter bridge, with its unusual design, presents particular engineering problems for conservationists. However, the framework provided by Lloyd Evans Prichard and AHP is a vital step in the process which will ensure a sustainable future for this exceptional landmark.

Public

Middlesbrough Town Hall, Cleveland ›
Congress Theatre, Eastbourne ›

Ecclesiastical

Whalley Abbey, Lancashire ›
Ironmonger Row Baths, London ›

Commercial

Regent Street, London ›
Watermen’s Hall, London ›

Military

Dymchurch Redoubt, Kent ›
Carlisle Castle, Cumbria ›

Industrial

Transporter Bridge, Middlesbrough ›
Nantyglo Round Towers, South Wales ›

Country

Gad’s Hill, Kent ›
Sundridge Park, Bromley ›