Discover the intriguing past of the South Accommodation Bridge in Leeds, a structure with a rich history and unique design.
Leeds: So, have you heard about the South Accommodation Bridge? It’s part of a series of bridges over the River Aire, and it has quite the story behind it.
Not much info is out there about this bridge, but it used to connect Hunslet Lane to York Road via Accommodation Road. Pretty neat, right?
Back in 1825, the Leeds Mercury reported that folks were raising money for it. They managed to gather £16,000 for the project, which is impressive for that time!
By November 1827, they were ready to apply to Parliament for an iron suspension bridge. The plan included connecting various roads, which sounds like a big deal back then.
George Leather, the engineer from Bradford, designed the bridge. To save some cash, they decided to use timber flooring instead of iron plating. Smart move!
In June 1828, they got the green light from Parliament. Leather went with a bow and string suspension design, which was pretty innovative for the time.
The bridge spanned 152 feet over the River Aire, with footpaths on the outside and a carriageway in the middle. It was a total of 240 feet long, which is quite a stretch!
Each part of the bridge was carefully crafted and fitted together. They used timber for the roadway to keep costs down, but it was still a solid structure.
Originally, the approach roads weren’t built as planned, and the bridge didn’t see much traffic. By 1860, they finally made it toll-free!
Fast forward to the 1890s, and the bridge couldn’t handle the traffic anymore. It was demolished in 1899 and replaced with a new design by Thomas Hewson.
Then in 1992, that bridge was also replaced, leaving a very different landscape in the area. It’s fascinating how things change over time!
