With recent controversy over the traffic issues surrounding Gateshead and Newcastle, we looked into the history of the Tyne Bridge and its cultural relevance to the North East region.
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00:00The £32 million project is supposed to take four years.
00:04Maintenance and refurbishment of the Tyne Bridge started in September 2023,
00:08with year one focusing on repairs for the main structure, drainage, merging and surfacing,
00:13year two repairing the main river span and repainting of the bridge,
00:17and year three should see the completion of the new castle site,
00:20and year four should see the completion of the main arch painting and final resurfacing.
00:26But many will probably ask, why are Newcastle City Council going through all that trouble and costs for a bridge,
00:32when the money could be used for other things?
00:35Well the Tyne Bridge is Grade 2 listed, meaning it's on the National Heritage List for England,
00:40where structures and buildings are protected by regulations that preserve their historical and architectural significance.
00:48This means they are legally protected from being demolished, extended or inappropriately altered,
00:54and if we look closer to the history of the Tyne Bridge, you can understand why.
01:00The Tyne Bridge was built for the new age of the motorised vehicles,
01:03and to help cope with increasing traffic crossing the River Tyne.
01:07The bridge was officially opened on 10 October 1928 by King George V.
01:12The King and Queen were the first to cross the bridge on the King's horse-drawn carriage,
01:16as thousands of people lined the streets for the ceremony,
01:19and 20,000 school children across the region had been given the day off to mark the special occasion.
01:25The bridge being made of steel and granite was a major engineering achievement for the early 20th century,
01:31and at the time of construction, the Tyne Bridge was the world's largest span bridge.
01:36Sadly, a gentleman named Nathaniel Collins, who was 33 years old, lost his life during the construction.
01:42He was the scaffolder for himself shields, who fell from the bridge during a shift.
01:47His family remembered that he had worked as a ship's plater, and then served in the First World War.
01:52They stated he was a man who knew no fear.
01:56Construction began in August 1925, using ship-building techniques by local shipyard workers,
02:02and was regarded as a prototype for the Sydney Harbour Bridge,
02:06which, alongside the Opera House, is widely regarded as the iconic image of Sydney.
02:11So, as you can expect, both the Tyne Bridge and Sydney Harbour Bridge had the same design team.
02:16Within that design team was a woman named Dorothy Buchanan,
02:20who was the first woman to gain entry to the industry of civil engineers.
02:25In March 2024, a commemorative plaque was unveiled on the Tyne Bridge, in honour of Buchanan.
02:32The Mayor of Gateshead at the time, Councillor Eileen McMaster, revealed the plaque.
02:36The plaque contains a quote from Buchanan herself, stating,
02:39I felt that I represented all the women in the world. It was my hope that I would be followed by many others.
02:45Buchanan may have got her wish after all.
02:47On the bridge's 90th birthday, over 90 female engineers from across the country gathered in Newcastle
02:53to celebrate the anniversary of the opening of the Tyne Bridge, and the female engineer behind the design.