This December, we completed our £30m restoration of Barmouth Viaduct in North Wales. To celebrate, here’s some key facts in numbers.
156
The number of years old this grade II* listed structure is. Its listed status recognises the special architectural and historic interest this Victorian bridge has and means we had to take extra care during our restoration work.
770 m
The 770m structure is the longest viaduct in Wales and the longest wooden railway bridge in Britain. When restoration began in 2020, we found many of the timber elements had decayed significantly and a large portion of the metallic elements was corroded.
160 tonnes
Part of the restoration involved moving two 160-tonne metallic spans. Each newly fabricated span weighed the same as a blue whale and required a total of 44 jacks – ranging from 20 to 100 tonnes capacity – as well as six rail trailers to carry out the move.
4
Our engineers worked in all sorts of weather and elements to keep to schedule. This included battling at least four named storms in that time.
120m
We installed a 120m new walkway with stainless steel handrail as part of the final phase of work. 297m of track on the northern side was also renewed and 388 tonnes of ballast – or track stone – replaced to ensure the safe running of trains crossing the bridge.
4 years
It took four years for our teams to painstakingly restore this iconic landmark back to its former glory. Each component was replaced on a ‘like for like’ basis to retain its majestic appearance.
We also purposely spread the work out over several years with four shorter closures to reduce the impact the work had on your journeys through here.
100%
The viaduct is now fully operational for rail journeys travelling along the Cambrian coast line. You can even walk across it to enjoy the breathtakingly beautiful views of the surrounding countryside and coastline.
