Albert Bridge
Sign in to saveAlso known as Albert Bridge Including Tollbooths, Lamp Standards And Stairs And Section Of Bridge Over The Embankment At The North End
road bridge over the River Thames in West London
Key facts
- Carries
- A3031 road
- Crosses
- River Thames
- Locale
- Battersea and Chelsea, London
- Maintained by
- Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council
- Heritage status
- Grade II* listed structure
- Preceded by
- Battersea Bridge
- Followed by
- Chelsea Bridge
- Design
- Ordish–Lefeuvre system , subsequently modified to an Ordish–Lefeuvre system / suspension bridge / beam bridge hybrid design
- Total length
- 710 feet (220 m)
- Width
- 41 feet (12 m)
- Height
- 66 feet (20 m)
- Longest span
- 384 feet 9 inches (117.27 m) (before 1973) 185 feet (56 m) (after 1973)
- Number span no of spans
- 4 (3 before 1973)
- Piers in water
- 6 (4 before 1973)
- Clearance below
- 37 feet 9 inches (11.5 m) at lowest astronomical tide
- Designer
- Rowland Mason Ordish , Joseph Bazalgette
- Opened
- 23 August 1873 ; 152 years ago ( 1873-08-23 )
- Daily traffic
- 19,821 vehicles (2004)
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Albert Bridge, London, UK.jpg
- Height
- 20
- Width
- 12.5
- Length
- 217
Show 6 more facts
- Commons category
- Albert Bridge
- number of spans
- 4
- date of official opening
- 1873-00-00
- longest span
- 56
- clearance
- 11.5
- OS grid reference
- TQ2739477519
Sources (7)
via Wikidata · CC0
~19 min read
Article
Albert Bridge is a road bridge over the River Thames connecting Chelsea on the north bank to Battersea on the south. Designed and built by Rowland Mason Ordish in 1873 as an Ordish–Lefeuvre system modified cable-stayed bridge, it proved to be structurally unsound, so between 1884 and 1887 Sir Joseph Bazalgette incorporated some of the design elements of a suspension bridge. In 1973 the Greater London Council (GLC) added two concrete piers, which transformed the central span into a simple beam bridge. As a result, today the bridge is an unusual hybrid of three design styles. It is an English Heritage Grade II* listed building.
Built as a toll bridge, it was a commercial failure. Six years after its opening it was taken into public ownership and the tolls were lifted. The tollbooths remained in place and are the only surviving examples of bridge tollbooths in London. Nicknamed "The Trembling Lady" because of its tendency to vibrate when large numbers of people walked over it, the bridge has signs at its entrances that warn troops to break step whilst crossing the bridge.