Boothferry Bridge

Boothferry Bridge is a crossing over the River Ouse, between the East Riding and West Yorkshire, England, some 2 miles (3.2 km) north-west of Goole. The bridge was opened in 1929, replacing a ferry crossing immediately west of the bridge's location. The Act of Parliament for the building of the bridge in 1925, gave priority to river traffic. This situation still exists, though there have been some attempts to change priorities. On opening, it was the furthest crossing downstream of the river, cutting 25 miles (40 km) off the journey south to London from Kingston upon Hull. The M62 Ouse Bridge opened up to the east of Boothferry Bridge in 1976.

Boothferry Bridge
Boothferry Bridge looking downstream
Coordinates53.727°N 0.890°W / 53.727; -0.890
OS grid referenceSE733262
CarriesA614 road
CrossesRiver Ouse
LocaleBoothferry, East Riding of Yorkshire, England
Preceded byOuse swing bridge
Followed byOuse Bridge
Characteristics
MaterialSteel
Total length698 feet (213 m)
Width32 feet (9.8 m)
No. of spans3
Piers in water12
History
DesignerMott, Hay & Anderson
Engineering design byCleveland Bridge
Construction cost£116,467 (1929)
OpenedJuly 1929
Location

History

The bridge at Boothferry was built to replace the ferry which connected the hamlet of Booth with the south side of the Ouse.[1] The ferry was owned by the Bishops of Durham and Ripon, having been in operation since at least 1513, but was leased to several operators before the bridge was built.[2][3] An Act of Parliament was granted in 1925 providing authority to construct the bridge and giving priority to river traffic.[4] An attempt was made in the 1980s to rescind the priority for river traffic.[5] Construction began in January 1926, with the bridge opening in July 1929, becoming the furthest bridge over the River Ouse.[6] Before that, the furthest bridge downstream on the River Ouse was Selby toll bridge, some 8 miles (13 km) upstream of the Boothferry Bridge.[7] Opening of the bridge eased the pressure on the east-west traffic through the region, notably helping to alleviate some of the traffic across the toll bridge at Selby, and providing a shorter route to and from Hull, being only 2 miles (3.2 km) north-west of Goole.[8][5] The journey from Hull to London was shortened by 25 miles (40 km) helping travellers to avoid going over the toll bridge at Selby. This continued until 1976, when the Ouse Bridge of the M62 opened, and then, in 1981, the Humber Bridge was opened.[9][10]

The bridge is a steel girder structure which is 698 feet (213 m) long.[11] The construction was funded by five public bodies, the Ministry of Transport (£56,000), West Riding County Council (£33,600), East Riding County Council (£5,600), Hull City Council (£11,200), and Goole Urban District Council (£5,600), at a total cost of £112,000.[12] However, by the time the bridge opened in July 1929, the bridge had cost £116,467 (equivalent to £7,465,000 in 2021), and the approach roads had cost £72,000.[13]

Engineering of the bridge was carried out by Cleveland Bridge, to a design by the firm of Mott, Hay & Anderson.[14] The structure has six sections, with the section closest to the East Yorkshire side of the river (north bank), being able to swing open to give a width clearance of 125 feet (38 m).[6][15] Barges were able to be towed up river past this point two abreast (lashed together), until they reached Selby.[16] Boothferry Bridge is supported by 12 piers in the water, which are sunk to a depth of 70 feet (21 m) below the water level.[13] The vehicular width of the bridge is 20-foot (6.1 m), with two 6-foot (1.8 m) sections for foot traffic on either side, making a combined width of 32 feet (9.8 m).[17]

Almost immediately to the east of Boothferry Bridge is the Ouse Bridge, which was opened in May 1976, and carries the M62 over the River Ouse.[18][19][20] In the 1960s, before the M62 bridge was built, consideration was given to re-using an abandoned railway bridge over the River Ouse at Long Drax (from the Hull and Barnsley Railway), in an effort to alleviate the traffic flow over Boothferry Bridge.[21][22] A major repair of the bridge was undertaken in 1979, when £1 million was spent on renovation works. On days when the bridge was closed completely to vehicular traffic, diversions were in place via the M62 bridge, but those that couldn't use the motorway (such as pedestrians) were taken on buses along the M62.[23] It was renovated and repaired again, in 2021, at a cost of £2.2 million.[24]

The bridge is the western limit of the Humber Estuary Special Area of Conservation.[25]

In 1972, a folk group, The Lonesome Travellers, recorded a song about the bridge.[26]

References
  1. "Booth and Boothferry". maps.nls.uk. Retrieved 11 May 2022. Use the slider on the lower left to toggle between modern day imagery and old maps
  2. Peach, Howard (2001). Curious tales of old East Yorkshire. Wilmslow, England: Sigma Leisure. p. 147. ISBN 1850587493.
  3. Sheahan, James Joseph (1857). History and topography of the City of York, the East Riding of Yorkshire, and a portion of the West Riding; embracing a general review of the early history of Great Britain, and a general history and description of the county of York. Beverley: John Green. p. 608. OCLC 5824605.
  4. Townend, Jon (15 March 2011). "Bridging a 30-year repair gap". infoweb.newsbank.com. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  5. "PROVISIONS RELATING TO BOOTHFERRY BRIDGE (Hansard, 3 December 1981)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 3 December 1981. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  6. "New Bridge Over The Ouse". The Times. No. 45156. Column D. 20 March 1929. p. 11. ISSN 0140-0460.
  7. Porteous, J. Douglas (1989). Planned to death : the annihilation of a place called Howdendyke. Manchester: Manchester University Press. p. 111. ISBN 0-7190-2831-0.
  8. Allison, K. J. (1976). The East Riding of Yorkshire landscape. London: Hodder & Stoughton. p. 228. ISBN 0340158212.
  9. Charlton, Peter, ed. (21 April 2012). "From the archive". The Yorkshire Post. p. 16. ISSN 0140-0460.
  10. "Humber Bridge closes footpaths for 'an indefinite period'". BBC News. 3 April 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  11. Pevsner, Nikolaus (2002). Yorkshire : York and the East Riding (2 ed.). London: Yale University Press. p. 490. ISBN 0300095937.
  12. "New West Riding Bridge". The Times. No. 44975. Column F. 18 August 1928. p. 7. ISSN 0140-0460.
  13. "Boothferry Bridge". The Times. No. 45259. Column C. 19 July 1929. p. 19. ISSN 0140-0460.
  14. "OBITUARY. SIR BASIL MOTT, Bart, CB, FRS, 1859-1938". Journal of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 10 (1): 129. November 1938. doi:10.1680/ijoti.1938.14582.
  15. "Boothferry Bridge repairs prompt public consultation". BBC News. 7 November 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
  16. Lewis, David (2017). River Ouse bargeman : a lifetime on the Yorkshire Ouse. Barnsley: Pen & Sword. p. 132. ISBN 978-1-47388-069-6.
  17. Stanley, Oliver, ed. (2011). British bridges : an illustrated technical and historical record. London: Thomas Telford. p. 333. ISBN 978-0-7277-5069-3.
  18. Chartres, John (24 May 1976). "M62 'missing link' opens for business today". The Times. No. 59712. p. 4. ISSN 0140-0460.
  19. East Riding and Northern Lincolnshire. London: George Philip. 2001. p. 64. ISBN 0540081450.
  20. Mcdonagh, Briony (2007). "Preparatory report on Volume X: Howden and Howdenshire, part of the East Riding of Yorkshire series of the Victoria County History With notes on sources, a bibliography and recommendations". Victoria County History: East Riding of Yorkshire: 30. doi:10.13140/RG.2.2.10320.76809.
  21. "Boothferry Bridge (Traffic Census)". hansard.parliament.uk. 15 March 1961. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  22. "Boothferry Bridge". hansard.parliament.uk. 14 June 1961. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  23. "Boothferry Bridge". hansard.parliament.uk. 22 January 1979. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  24. Wood, Alex (4 November 2021). "92-year-old swing bridge in Yorkshire to be closed this weekend as part of £2.2m upgrade". The Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  25. Rowland, A.; Trim, L.; Ash, J. (March 2008). "The programme of flood defence works, Humber estuary". Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Maritime Engineering. 161 (1): 1. doi:10.1680/maen.2008.161.1.1.
  26. "Boothferry History - Asselby Parish Council". asselbyparishcouncil.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
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Bridges over the River Ouse
Upstream: River Ouse swing bridge Downstream: Ouse Bridge
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