Railway underbridge MDL1/12, Toad Holes

This railway underbridge, built between 1845 and 1847 by Thomas Grainger for the Leeds, Dewsbury & Manchester Railway, is a Grade II listed structure. It features a cast-iron beam bridge that spans a single carriageway, supported by masonry abutments with iron parapet balustrades set between ashlar end-pillars. The surrounding embankments are reinforced with raking, curved wing-walls. The bridge deck has been replaced with steel beams and concrete panels.

The abutments are constructed of coursed, squared, rock-faced masonry, topped with a robust moulded ashlar cornice that supports the bridge deck. On either side of the carriageway, there are panelled ashlar pilasters that rise from rock-faced masonry plinths and are finished with lighter-sectioned moulded cornices. These pilasters are slightly wider at the base than at the top, enhancing their height. The parapet end-pillars above feature corniced capstones and plain plinths. Between the pillars, the iron balustrading includes a plain handrail supported by closely spaced balusters, which have mirrored tulip-formed mid-sections, while the rest are simple round bars. The facia beams of the bridge deck are believed to be the only surviving cast-iron beams from the original structure, appearing as I beams with raised strapwork designed to imitate panelling. The wing walls are made of rock-faced masonry similar to the abutments, finished with a plain ashlar capping and separated from the retaining walls of the embankment by simple pilaster-strips. The northwestern approach to the bridge has been infilled, covering the wing walls, while the parapet remains visible. The southeastern side of the bridge is still open.