Kingston Railway Bridge
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Kingston Railway Bridge | |
|---|---|
 South West Trains service crossing Kingston Railway Bridge | |
| Coordinates | 51°24′48.66″N 0°18′30.49″W / 51.4135167°N 0.3084694°W |
| Carries | Kingston–Richmond loop line |
| Crosses | River Thames |
| Locale | Kingston upon Thames |
| Characteristics | |
| Material | Steel |
| Height | 22 feet 4 inches (6.81 m)[1] |
| Longest span | 22 feet 11 inches (6.99 m) |
| No. of spans | 5 |
| Piers in water | 2 |
| History | |
| Designer | John Wykeham Jacomb-Hood |
| Opened | 1863 |
| Location | |
 Interactive map of Kingston Railway Bridge | |
Kingston Railway Bridge in Kingston upon Thames, Greater London, crosses the River Thames on the reach above Teddington Lock. It carries the Kingston Loop Line train service (for passengers only) from London Waterloo station, where the majority of services begin and end and which line includes a maintenance depot. The loop diverges from main lines at New Malden and Richmond. East and west of the bridge along the line are Kingston and Hampton Wick stations. The loop returns to the south bank of its terminus via Richmond Railway Bridge. The loop feeds a branch line, a further incentive for the 1863 construction of the bridge, the Shepperton branch line.
The present bridge was designed by John Wykeham Jacomb-Hood and built in 1907, replacing a cast-iron bridge designed by J E Errington,[2] first discussed in 1860 and completed in 1863.[3]
The bridge has five arches: three span the Thames; two span dry land, which on the Kingston bank includes a road. The bridge has elevated track approaches varying from on viaduct to on embankment, which navigate curves and fly over an urban grid of roads.
Twin power stations were close to the bridge on the Kingston bank from 1893 to 1959 as to one and from 1948 to 1980 as to the later. Being close to the Thames, coal came up river by barge, and ash was sent away the same way.[4] The barge dock was constructed at Kingston Railway Bridge close to the present the upstream entrance to Canbury Gardens. Much of these sites has been landscaped for public park use and accommodates high-specification 21st century mid- and high-rise apartments.[5]
