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Friday 15 Mar 2024

Historic Paisley railway bridge receives £500k makeover

Region & Route:

Scotland’s Railway: Scotland

Paisley Gilmour Street station’s B-listed railway bridge has been given a new lease of life by Network Rail.

That’s after engineers completed girder repairs on the underside of the structure to strengthen it and extend its lifespan by another 25 years as part of a £500,000 investment.

The single span bridge, which dates back to 1840, is 18.2 metres long and carries the Ayr and Gourock lines over Gilmour Street.

Work finished today (Friday 15 March) following a two-month programme where the brickwork was temporarily removed to expose the girders and allow 25 steel plates to be fitted to the beams.

The 184-year-old bridge’s listed status, owing to its special historical interest, meant extreme care had to be taken to restore the brick work to its original form.

A lane closure had been in place on the road to allow this delicate work to be completed and the road has now fully re-opened to traffic.

Jason Haxton, project manager, Network Rail, said: “The work to strengthen the structure and carry out other repairs on this railway bridge is part of our commitment to providing a safe and reliable railway.

“We needed a lane closure to deliver this work safely and efficiently, and I’d like to thank road users, pedestrians and local residents for their patience during the project.”

The bridge was originally constructed as a two-track structure for the Glasgow and Paisley Joint Railway before being widened around 1890 to accommodate four tracks and additional platforms.

One of many Victorian-era assets across Scotland’s Railway, the bridge continues to support the platforms and the station’s listed façade today.