Railway Bridge

Railway Bridge, Glenville Road

This railway bridge exemplifies the distinctive utilitarian style of the London, Midland & Scottish Railway (Northern Counties Committee). Although modest in scale, its significance is substantially enhanced by its association with the 1930s Greenisland Loop Scheme, the largest civil engineering project of its era, which also provided much-needed employment during its construction. The bridge is one of three structures in very close proximity to one another, all distinctive features of Glenville Road. It has functional and group value associations with two viaducts at Bleach Green Junction to the north. This group of original, unaltered concrete structures is of particular interest as an expression of 1930s engineering and function.

The bridge is a skew single-span concrete structure carrying the Belfast-Larne railway over Glenville Road, including two footpaths, one of which is raised. It is constructed entirely of painted reinforced concrete, all cast in situ. The arch is of three-centred profile, above which runs a banded reveal of shallow segmental profile. The parapets feature recessed rectangular panels and carry the date 1931 on the middle of their outer faces. The sloping wing walls on the west side display banded rustication with slightly advanced copings. The similarly detailed bank retaining walls on the east side merge with those of the adjacent bridge. The deck slopes slightly downward from south to north to align the track with the burrowing junction beneath a nearby structure. Restricted-headroom warning signs (11 feet 6 inches and 3.5 metres) are attached to the west face.

Historical context

When the Belfast-Ballymena railway opened in 1848, the line ran via Greenisland to avoid the expense of constructing a massive viaduct across the valley of the Three Mile Water, known locally as Valentine's Glen. This detour required trains to be reversed between Greenisland and Antrim, adding significantly to journey time. In the early 1930s, the London, Midland & Scottish Railway's Northern Counties Committee initiated construction of a viaduct across the glen to eliminate the Greenisland detour and reduce journey time by 20 to 25 minutes.

The Greenisland Loop Scheme involved construction of this and four other bridges at the Whiteabbey end, plus four more en route to Monkstown. The project cost £250,000 (approximately £12 million in contemporary values) and was directed by the NCC's Resident Engineer W.K. Wallace. It served as a job creation scheme, taking 550 men off social security. Although this section of line did not open until January 1934, this particular bridge was completed in 1931. It carries the down line from Belfast to Larne and aligns it with a burrowing junction beneath an adjacent structure before crossing the glen. The up line from Larne to Belfast continues to use the original bridge across the glen.

In 1999, Translink undertook repairs as part of reopening the Belfast-Antrim line, which had closed to passengers in 1978. The work included blast cleaning, concrete repairs, waterproofing and repainting. The line reopened in June 2001.