Alston Arches Viaduct

The Alston Arches Viaduct is a disused railway viaduct that spans the River South Tyne. It was constructed in 1852 by Sir George Barclay Bruce for the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway Company. The viaduct is made of rock-faced dressed stone with ashlar dressings and features a long and low design with six arches. There are four wide segmental skew arches that cross the river, along with semicircular arches at each end that extend over riverside paths.

The structure includes moulded impost bands and cutwaters that rest on tall rounded plinths, featuring moulded bases and hollow-chamfered caps. The end arches are flanked by slightly projecting, flat-faced piers. A low parapet, marked by a band at track level, has projecting coping and steps forward over the piers and cutwaters to create pedestrian refuges. Additionally, round-arched openings are cut through the supporting cross-walls of each arch, which were originally intended to be connected by a pedestrian walkway across the river. The viaduct serves as an important feature in the landscape.