Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge

The Tees Transporter Bridge stands over the River Tees between Port Clarence and Middlesbrough. It is the longest transporter bridge still in existence and carries a suspended gondola across the water. The bridge’s winch house and piers are separately listed for their historic value. It once held the A178 road between Middlesbrough and Hartlepool. The gondola travels the span in ninety seconds and can carry up to two hundred people or nine cars. The bridge was built between 1910 and 1911 by Sir William Arrol & Co. of Glasgow at a cost of £68,026. Its foundation stones were laid by the Mayor of Middlesbrough and the scheme’s initiator. The opening ceremony in 1911 was performed by Prince Arthur of Connaught. During the Second World War a bomb struck the superstructure yet the bridge kept working. In 1993 it received the Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ Heritage Plaque for engineering excellence. Visitors once reached a small visitor centre built on the site of the old workshop. The bridge carried Terry Scott’s Jaguar off the roadway in 1974 after he mistook it for a toll crossing. Floodlights were added in 1993 to illuminate the structure in winter. An annual vintage bus running day still draws crowds to free rides across the Tees. Films including Billy Elliot and Vera have featured the bridge in their stories.