Almond Valley Viaduct

{{distinguish|Almondell Viaduct}}

File:Almond Valley Viaduct - geograph.org.uk - 3333934.jpg

The Almond Valley Viaduct is a large Victorian railway viaduct on the boundary between West Lothian and Edinburgh in Scotland.{{Canmore |num=50786 |desc=Kirkliston, Almond Valley Viaduct |access-date=14 January 2024}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.konect.scot/post/a-victorian-vision-the-almond-valley-viaduct|title=A Victorian Vision – the Almond Valley Viaduct|publisher=Konect, West Lothian|access-date=14 January 2024}}{{cite book | last=Hogg | first=Chris | last2=Patrick | first2=Lynn | title=Scottish Railway Icons: Central Belt to the Borders | publisher=Amberley Publishing Limited | date=2015-10-15 | isbn=978-1-4456-2115-9}} The viaduct is {{convert|1.5| miles}} long and has 36 masonry arches, making it one of the longest viaducts in Scotland. It is Category A Listed.{{Historic Environment Scotland|num=LB7428 |desc=RAILWAY VIADUCT, ALMOND VALLEY |cat=A |access-date=14 January 2024}}

History

The viaduct was designed by the engineer John Miller{{Cite web|url=https://www.westlothian.gov.uk/media/3867/Making-Tracks/pdf/Making_Tracks.pdf|title=Making Tracks|publisher=West Lothian Council|access-date=14 January 2024}} and constructed by John Gibb. It opened in 1842 to carry the newly completed Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway (today the Glasgow-Edinburgh via Falkirk line) over the River Almond. It is known simply as "The Arches" locally.

The viaduct was designed so the railway was kept as level as possible with a planned maximum gradient of 1 in 880, ensuring the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was the most level main line in the UK at the time.

As it is situated between Broxburn (in West Lothian) and Newbridge / Ratho (on the periperhy of the City of Edinburgh council area, the viaduct is sometimes known by those names;[https://www.scottish-places.info/features/featurefirst19089.html Almond Valley Viaduct (Ratho Viaduct)], Gazetteer for Scotland however, there is another {{ill|Broxburn Viaduct|de}} immediately to the west which carries the same railway lines over the A89 road and Brox Burn,[https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/200339300-broxburn-viaduct-kirkliston-kirkliston Broxburn Viaduct, Kirkliston], British Listed Buildings and another viaduct over the Almond on the approach to Newbridge / Ratho a short distance to the south, carrying the North Clyde Line railway, which is more commonly known as Birdsmill Viaduct[https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/200363657-birdsmill-viaduct-kirkliston-edinburgh Birdsmill Viaduct, Kirkliston], British Listed Buildings (to add to the potential confusion, the Broxburn Viaduct is considered by some to be part of the Almond Valley Viaduct, and the properties lending their name to Birdsmill Viaduct are accessed from a road of that name which leads off the A89 under the Broxburn Viaduct). Both of these bridges are also listed structures.

See also

References

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