Happy birthday to a transport of delight

Middlesbrough
marks the centenary of its famous bridge still chug back and forth in the room of comedian Terry Scott hour.The left by mistake. More quietly, you can rappel down to him for £ 3



exposure Dorman Museum marks the fact that this month the Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge celebrates the centenary of its opening.

return on October 17, 1911, the grand-son of Queen Victoria, Prince Arthur of Connaught and a host of local dignitaries made the first official crossing of the majestic 260 meters of cantilever length.



Over the 100 years since the car suspended, now a canary curious that transports cars and passengers across the shirts of Middlesbrough to Port Clarence, is supposed to have moved back and forth 6000000 times. He was initially taken up to 860 passengers at the crash site and a tram at every stage - at its peak in 1919, more than 5,000,000 passengers used the bridge each year are impressive figures that now, but leaves still room Middlebrough once every fifteen minutes 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. every "week .. / Aa>


Previously there had been a ferry to take people through the jacket, or a long trip upstream. Plans for the bridge was 50 years ago before the carrier is open. There have been numerous public meetings and the lines before construction began a large minority opposed to the bridge, and finally came to a public vote in January 1907, with 2255 people who voted for the bridge, and 1620 -. probably the first bridge in the world to be democratically elected.

Cleveland Bridge Company was chosen to design a bridge that has solved the problem of how to cross the river without obstructing vessels to shear coal, iron and steel . Although a Norwegian sailing ship lost its mast in 1919 when he tried to surf at high tide, damage was also caused by the bombing in both wars -. a zeppelin in the first, and an attacker in seconds - while the actor Terry Scott, apparently a misunderstanding of the card and thinking it was getting a fixed bridge, as it took her Jaguar in the final road, landing, fortunately escaped unhurt from a safety net, rather than on Tees - if you look today, Google Maps, your error is understandable because it is marked as a road bridge.

Cleveland Bridge has worked on other bridges the symbol of the city like the deck of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, the Auckland Harbour Bridge in New Zealand and the Humber Bridge was merged Middlesbrough in 1960 with steel and engineering group Dorman Long, the main bridges, Tyne Bridge in Newcastle -. Geordies do not always like to be reminded that his image was built on Teesside - and the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia (which has "Made in Middlesbrough" proudly printed on the side).

in 1911 the figure was 1 d in each direction, but it could get a 6 week again 8d (3 1/2p in today's money) rather than pay the full one shilling. Take an ox or a cow by the 3D would have cost. Today it is 70p for pedestrians, £ 1.30 for a car and the price is not quoted for cattle, although abseilers charge of ? 3. " / Aa>

• and photographs of the bridge under construction and far objects, the exhibition also includes a large-scale mechanical model of the bridge carefully crafted by the fans, and even an egg Bridge engraved with an image.
• The steel blue has many wonderful fans: Hidden Treasures of England Michael McNay has a section of the bridge, assuming that the contamination used to spoil the view, "as far as I remember was enveloped in the smoke of hell, but the bridge has attracted all eyes, even then," but now "The Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge is that the Empire State Building in New York is "Nikolaus Pevsner is particularly enthusiastic, saying buildings in North Yorkshire. "A European monument, one is tempted to say it is the suspension bridge, 1911, 850 feet long and 225 feet, and his boldness and subtlety, emotion to look anywhere" and "is without perhaps the most impressive building in Middlesbrough "- even including the only office designed by his friend William Morris and architect Philip Webb, the neighboring building Dorman Long Zetland Street.

centennial celebrations are not only about the past the bridge, however. According to the Latin motto Middlesbrough Council "Erimus" ("let be"), with the help of a grant of £ 2.6 million from the Heritage Lottery, the major reform will structure the work fir the next century. It is also expected to put in the elevators that will save the visitors struggled up the stairs to the podium dizzy at the top - what is now a popular place for bungee jumping, and provide spectacular views the North Sea and beyond the hills of Cleveland.

We are fortunate the carrier survived the bombs of the Luftwaffe and the melting of Auf Pet Weidersehen could not sell the bridge to a millionaire in Arizona to be rebuilt on the border between the Grand Canyon.

carrier is the exhibition at the Museum of Dorman, Middlesbrough, until January next

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