Wheatley Viaduct
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Wheatley Viaduct is a former railway bridge straddling the Hebble Brook on the northern side of Halifax, in
West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...
, England. The ten-arch viaduct was built as part of the
Halifax High Level Railway The Queensbury lines was the name given to a number of railway lines in West Yorkshire, England, that linked Bradford, Halifax and Keighley via Queensbury. All the lines were either solely owned by the Great Northern Railway (GNR) or jointly ...
that connected with the
Queensbury lines The Queensbury lines was the name given to a number of railway lines in West Yorkshire, England, that linked Bradford, Halifax and Keighley via Queensbury. All the lines were either solely owned by the Great Northern Railway (GNR) or jointly ...
complex of the Great Northern Railway between Halifax, and
Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
. The line was opened in 1890, and closed to all traffic in 1960.


History

The Queensbury lines were opened to traffic in the late 1870s, and the Halifax High Level Railway was opened in 1890. Originally the intent had been for the line to be extended through Halifax to connect with a proposed
Hull and Barnsley Railway The Hull Barnsley & West Riding Junction Railway and Dock Company (HB&WRJR&DCo.) was opened on 20 July 1885. It had a total projected length of but never reached Barnsley, stopping a few miles short at Stairfoot. The name was changed to The ...
station in the centre of Halifax, and as such, the trackbed was built to accommodate two lines. The line had two major engineering features, the viaduct, and nearby Wheatley Tunnel, with the cost of the branch coming in at £300,000 (). Mapping from 1905 shows the entire branch had double track, but by the late 1940s when it was a freight only branch, just one line was in use across Wheatley Viaduct and through the adjacent tunnel. The viaduct has ten arches, each wide, and stretches for at a height of . It has a curve of radius from the south to the east when viewed from above. In the original plans from 1874, the viaduct was to be long and high. The viaduct is constructed of rock-faced stone, ashlar and blue brick. The piers have springer stones facing out into each arch; it is believed that these supported the timber frame during the building phase. Just after the viaduct going east is the long Wheatley Tunnel. The viaduct is on the level, but has gradients on either side; 1-in-50 to the west, and 1-in-112 to the east leading up to the tunnel. Whilst the line was closed to passenger trains in 1917, goods continued until final closure in the summer of 1960. The former trackbed is not accessible to the public. In November 2023, the
Historical Railways Estate The Historical Railways Estate (HRE) is formed of over 3,100 structures—predominantly bridges, viaducts, tunnels and other works—associated with former railways in the United Kingdom. The structures are owned by the Department for Transport (Df ...
announced that they would be carrying out over £1 million worth of renovations to the viaduct to remove vegetation, replaced water-damaged bricks and to reinforce one of the piers. The work was completed in September 2024.


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Image of the viaduct and tunnel portal looking eastwards Modern day images of the viaduct
{{Viaducts in Yorkshire Bridges completed in 1890 Railway viaducts in West Yorkshire Former railway bridges in the United Kingdom Viaducts in England