Road bridge over the river Usk - geograph

Usk Bridge plaque, Brecon (geograph 2977056)

The Usk Bridge (Welsh: ''Pont-Yr-Wysg'') in

Brecon Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the coun ...

, Powys, Wales is the town's oldest route over the

River Usk The River Usk (; cy, Afon Wysg) rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain (''y Mynydd Du''), Wales, in the westernmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially forming the boundary between Carmarthenshire and Powys, it flo ...

. It carries the B4601 road, formerly the

A40 A40 or A-40 may refer to: Roads * A40 motorway (Canada), a road in Québec * A40 motorway (France) * A40 motorway (Germany) * A40 road (Great Britain), a road connecting London and Fishguard, Wales * A40 road (Northern Ireland), a road running fr ...

, between Brecon and

Llanfaes Llanfaes (formerly also known as Llanmaes) is a small village on the island of Anglesey, Wales, located on the shore of the eastern entrance to the Menai Strait, the tidal waterway separating Anglesey from the north Wales coast. Its natural har ...

History

The river was fordable at Brecon and the date of construction of the original bridge here is uncertain. The existing stone bridge was built in 1563 and replaced an earlier bridge that was washed away in the floods of 1535. It was widened in 1794 by bridge builder Thomas Edwards, at a cost of £1,000 (equivalent to £ in ) During the 20th century it was widened further with the addition of metal framed footpaths on either side. In the 1950s it required widening to take modern road traffic and a new concrete bed, described as "functional and safe but extremely ugly", was laid on top of the original stone base.

Status

The bridge is a Grade I

listed structure In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

References

{{coord, 51.94756, -3.39382, type:landmark_region:GB, format=dms, display=title Bridges in Powys Bridges over the River Usk Buildings and structures completed in 1563 Grade I listed bridges in Wales Road bridges in Wales Grade I listed buildings in Powys Scheduled monuments in Powys Stone bridges in the United Kingdom