Menai Crossings

The Menai Suspension Bridge was the first to cross the Menai Strait - a fast-flowing stretch of tidal water that was 1,300ft (400m) wide at its narrowest point. Before the bridge went up the only way across the channel was by ferry.
Engineer Thomas Telford was asked to survey the strait for a suitable crossing. He recommended a suspension bridge as high banks and fast moving currents meant it would be difficult to build on the sea bed. It would also be high enough to let tall ships pass under it - Admiralty rules at the time demanded clearance of 100ft (30m) above high water.
The Menai suspension bridge made it quicker and far safer to get people and goods from Anglesey to Wales. The bridge boosted the local economy and was particularly good news for local farmers who no longer had to swim their produce across the channel.
The Britannia bridge was also part of the expansion of the railways across Britain in the 1850s. Engineer Robert Stephenson used a tubular design with trains running on tracks inside a rigid box girder structure. It was the first direct rail link between London and the port of Holyhead. It also reduced journey times between Anglesey and the capital.
To learn more about the Menai Crossings click here: www.ice.org.uk/what-is-civil-...

[@c-historia]

bellissimo video 🎥

[@brianbender7438]

Very nice show. I am reading a book on materials and the author (J.E. Gordon) mentions both of these bridges as excellent examples of good design and engineering. So......watching this was most helpful in my understanding of the expertise of Mr. Telford, Stephenson and Fairbairn. Thank you!
Brian in Napa, California, USA