The construction of the Silver Jubilee Bridge was started on April 25th1956 and was opened on July 21st 1961 by H.R.H. Princess Alexandra of Kent.
In 1975 work was started to widen the bridge and this was done by Consultants, Mott Hay and Anderson. Contractor were a consortium of Leonard Fairclough and Redpath Dorman Long. The extended bridge was opened by The Minister of Transport on 24th March 1977. At 330m the bridge is one of the largest steel arch bridges in the world.
In 1947 the Transporter Bridge was 42 years old and it was obviously inadequate for present day needs, it was decided that a new bridge was needed. Meanwhile the Transporter Bridge continued to transport vehicles and people across the Mersey.
In 1958 two million passengers, a hundred and fifty thousand private vehicles and a hundred thousand commercial vehicles were transported across the Mersey. In the same year Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, inspected models and plans and viewed the site of the new bridge before crossing the river to Runcorn on the old Transporter Bridge. The Transporter Bridge closed in 1961 the day after the new bridge was opened.
The Construction of the Silver Jubilee Bridge
Early view around St Mary's Vicarage, Widnes
Skewback pier under construction
Bridge arch rises from Runcorn
A view from Mersey Road, Runcorn
Nearing completion, the decking under construction
Opening ceremony by H.R.H. Princess Alexandra of Kent.
Thank you to Dave Thompson for allowing the use of photos and text from his book 'Bridging us Together' . Dave Thompson's book is a comprehensive story of the construction of the Bridge with many early photos. The book is available from Curiosity Book Shop Runcorn, Halton Libraries and the Information Centre, Church Street, Runcorn.
