Bridge On Old Coach Road

The Bridge on Old Coach Road is a road bridge located in Ulpha, dating from the 18th century or earlier. It is constructed from random Lakeland stone rubble and features slab copings. This narrow rural overbridge has near-parallel abutments and low, roughly-coped parapet walls. It has a single arch span, with a low segmental arch that rises from boulder springers, formed with narrow, elongated, and roughly-shaped voussoirs. At the south end of the bridge, vertically-set flagstones serve as terminal piers for the parapet walls. The bridge carries an old coach road over the Blea Beck into the Duddon valley.

Historically, this bridge supported a long-established rural routeway through the parish of Ulpha. Between 1844 and 1845, it served as a coach link for the railway line that was under construction, which was intended to connect Broughton-in-Furness to the Whitehaven and Furness Junction line. This horse link was noted in the railway timetables of that time. The bridge remains largely unaltered and showcases typical regional vernacular detailing, with a brief historical connection to the development of the Cumbrian railway network.