One of a kind, Stainless Steel bridge opens to the public in the Lake District

We reported on this new Stainless Steel Bridge a while ago, as it was the first bridge of its type to be designs and produced in the UK. Well finally the wait is over, and deep in the Lake District National Park the beautiful Stainless Steel Pooley Bridge is open to the public. The original bridge was a 3 span stone arch which was constructed in 1794, and provided an essential link for local people on either side of the river. Unfortunately this bridge, which was Grade 2 listed, was washed away when Storm Desmond hit the UK in December 2015. This new bridge was constructed as part of Cumbria County Council’s £120m Infrastructure Recovery Programme, which has supported more than 1,200 projects following the damage caused by Storm Desmond. This new design was created by Knight Architects (Photo: Tom McNally) and is a 40m span open-spandrel arch bridge with a single composite flat arch formed in stainless-steel and high strength concrete supporting twin pedestrian walkways and the single carriageway road. This is the first road bridge in the UK to be built using Stainless Steel, and its width varies between 7.5m and 9.5m with the widest point at the centre. David S Brown, Programme Director for the Cumbria County Council Infrastructure Recovery programme, said: “Cumbria County Council are absolutely delighted with the new bridge!  It is a fitting testament to the collaborative and innovative efforts of the entire project team, which included in-depth stakeholder engagement skilfully led by Knight Architects. The elegant structure is deserving as an entrance to the Lake District National Park.  Not only has the new bridge reconnected the Ullswater area after the destruction sown by Storm Desmond (2015) but it has reconnected the community and is an embodiment of the village and wider Cumbrian society: beautiful and resilient. Pooley Bridge now has an iconic new crossing to be proud of and which will attract many visitors in the years to come.” Pooley Bridge is a great example of how Stainless Steel can be used to create so many essential and important structures, not only that it can be made to create structures and products that are beautiful to look at. The ethos of functionality, mixed with specialist fabrication, on bespoke projects like Pooley, reflects how DSM approaches all of our high quality bespoke stainless steel products.