Rectory Junction Viaduct
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2018}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2018}}
{{Infobox bridge
|bridge_name = Rectory Junction Viaduct
|image = Netherfield - west side of Trent Viaduct (Geograph-1001672).jpg
|caption =
|official_name =
|also_known_as = Radcliffe Viaduct
|carries = Nottingham-Grantham Line
|crosses = River Trent
|id =
|design =
|material = cast iron
|mainspan = {{convert|110|ft|m|0}}
|length =
|width =
|clearance =
|below = {{convert|24|ft}}
|traffic =
|open = 1850
|closed =
|toll =
|heritage = Grade II listed
|map_cue =
|map_image =
|map_text =
|map_width =
|coordinates = {{coord|52.9511|-1.0541|display=inline,title}}
}}
{{Nottingham-Grantham Line}}
Rectory Junction Viaduct, also known as the Radcliffe Viaduct,Jacobs, G., Ed (2005) Quail Track Diagrams: Book 4: Midlands and North West, 2nd Edition, Bradford on Avon: Trackmaps crosses the River Trent between Netherfield and Radcliffe on Trent near Nottingham. It is a Grade II listed building.{{NHLE|num= 1249646| desc= RAILWAY BRIDGE OVER THE RIVER TRENT |accessdate= 15 June 2015}}
History
The bridge was built in 1850 by Clayton & Shuttleworth of Lincoln on the Nottingham-Grantham Line for the Ambergate, Nottingham, Boston and Eastern Junction Railway.
The Trent Navigation Company demanded a minimum clear span of {{convert|100|ft}}, so the railway company built a {{convert|110|ft}} cast iron arch. The clearance above the water is {{convert|24|ft}}. The iron arch was formed of six ribs, constructed in eight segments.
The approach viaduct, originally constructed in timber and comprising 32 spans,{{cite book |title=The Railway Magazine |volume=50 |date=1922}} was rebuilt in brick in 1909-1910 by Alexander Ross. The brick viaduct comprises 28 spans, eighteen are 24 ft 11 ins, and ten are 25 ft 7 ins.Masonry as Applied to Civil Engineering: Being a Practical Treatise on the Design and Construction of Engineering Works in Stone and Heavy Concrete. F. Noel Taylor
The internal cast iron ribs were encased in concrete by British Rail in 1981 to increase the strength of the bridge, but the original cast iron ribs on the exterior were left exposed, leaving the bridge appearance little changed.{{Cite web|url=http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=529|title = Engineering Timelines - Radcliffe-on-Trent Viaduct}}
{{River item box
|River = River Trent
|upstream = Lady Bay Bridge
|upsub = {{UK road|A6011}}
|downstream = Gunthorpe Bridge
|downsub = {{UK road|A6097}}
|thisis = Rectory Junction Railway Bridge
|type =
|location = SK636397 }}