Brick Bridge 78c Over The Rochdale Canal - Failsworth, UK - Arch Bridges on Waymarking.com

The Rochdale canal is 32 miles long and connects Manchester on the west side of the Pennine Hills and Sowerby Bridge on the east side.

It was completed in 1804 and is one of three canals that cross the Pennine hills. This is the only one that doesn’t use a summit tunnel. In addition it was a broad canal with bridges and locks that allowed boats of 14 feet width to pass through.

The one downside of not using a summit tunnel is that it originally had 92 locks. These days two of them have been combined into one deep lock.

Competition from railways and roads subsequently led to a decline in goods being carried and by 1937 the only section left in operation was at the Manchester end of the canal.

In 1965 there was talk of abandoning the canal but by this time leisure boating had become very popular in the UK and there was a campaign to keep it open. Work was started and the canal slowly re-opened in a number of different stages. The whole length finally reopened in 2002.

Since the time the bridge was built, the levels of road traffic have greatly increased on this major arterial road. The bridge has been widened on one side with a modern girder bridge, but the original arch has been retained and can still be seen.

The bridge is built at a skew angle across the canal, near to a bend. The tow ropes from the canal boats used to cut into the arch of the bridge and so wooden rollers were attached to the bridge to the protect it. The roller from the brick side of the arch is no longer present, but gthe metal fixings, and some repairs to the brick can still be seen.

There is a wooden roller still attached to the new side of the bridge but this may be a modern reproduction.

What type of traffic does this bridge support?: Motor vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists What kind of gap does this bridge cross?: The Rochdale Canal Is the bridge still in service for its original purpose?: Yes Name of road or trail the bridge services: Oldham Road (A62) Location: Failsworth, Greater Manchester Length of bridge: Not listed Height of bridge: Not listed Date constructed: Not listed

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