Where's the world鈥檚 oldest rail bridge in continuous use?

It鈥檚 the world鈥檚 oldest railway bridge in continuous use. It ranks among Historic England鈥檚 100 Places and has even appeared on the 拢5 note.

Have you guessed where it is?

Skerne Bridge in Darlington has just celebrated its 195^th birthday, along with its historic line 鈥� the Stockton and Darlington Railway.

This was the world’s first public railway to use steam locomotives, making it the birthplace of today鈥檚 modern passenger railway.

We鈥檙e proud to look after our Victorian infrastructure and carried out essential maintenance on Skerne Bridge ahead of the milestone.

Skerne Bridge in Darlington — Skerne Bridge – one of the world’s most historically important pieces of transport infrastructure

We removed plants and weeds from the stonework and cut back some of the trees beside the railway. Managing the growth will help to keep your running safely and reliably and has made Skerne Bridge more visible for people in Darlington. Meanwhile, we repainted sections of the bridge and removed graffiti.

We worked closely with the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust and Darlington Borough Council to brighten up the area and bring the bridge closer to its former glory.

Skerne Bridge officially opened on 27 September 1825 to carry the Stockton and Darlington Railway over the River Skerne. This was also the first time members of the public could travel by steam train.

Today, services on the Darlington to Bishop Auckland line run over Skerne Bridge. It鈥檚 about half a mile from the East Coast Main Line, which connects the capitals of England and Scotland via Yorkshire, York, Durham and Newcastle.

Pioneering engineer George Stephenson laid out his plans for this ground-breaking railway in a very special notebook:

Two years ago, we rediscovered the notebook after more than 50 years. The notebook, dated 1822, was found by John Page, a records assistant at 51爆料鈥檚 archive in York. It outlines Stephenson鈥檚 redesign of and budget for the Stockton and Darlington Railway, and became the blueprint for the railways that followed.

Click here to find out more about the historic plans.

Paul Rutter, route director of our East Coast route, said: 鈥淪kerne Bridge is a vital part of our railway history, and I鈥檓 proud of our teams for carrying out this work ahead of the 195^th anniversary, so it can be celebrated by people in Darlington and showcased to those visiting the town.

鈥淭he bridge carried the first passenger trains and it will remain an essential part of Darlington鈥檚 railway for years to come.鈥�

Graeme Bunker-James, The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, said: 鈥淎s the custodians of Darlington鈥檚 modern manufacture of steam locomotives, it is wonderful to see the world famous location recognised as the birthplace of the public railway fit for the celebrations.鈥�

Where’s the world鈥檚 oldest rail bridge in continuous use?

Have you guessed where it is?

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