Two historic viaducts are refurbished and refreshed
TWO classic Victorian viaducts on Network Rail’s South Croydon to Uckfield line have undergone major refurbishments.
Engineers have been working around the clock since the summer of 2020 to repair and strengthen 1881-built Oxted Viaduct at a cost of £10.5 million.
Twelve roller bearings, which support the viaduct’s weight and allow the bridge to expand in the heat of summer and contract in the cold of winter, have been replaced. This part of the refurbishment involved lifting the viaduct’s supporting columns, each weighing up to 175 tonnes, before sliding the bearings into place.
Repairs have been made to the brickwork on the supporting columns and arches. Steelwork has been cleaned back to the bare metal, treated, and then repainted using 12,000 litres of protective paint. The old timber bridge deck was also replaced with new easier to maintain materials.
The line was opened jointly by the LBSCR and the SER, and the viaduct spans the A25 road and the River Eden.
Network Rail’s Sussex route director Katie Frost said: “Oxted Viaduct is one of the most iconic railway structures in the south of England. Working on it and protecting such an important part of railway heritage has been a real honour. It also remains a vital piece of the operational railway today, so while it was great to protect our heritage, it was also essential to keep lines open and trains running safely and reliably.
Chris Fowler, customer services director for Southern, added: “This is good news for our customers and for the many admirers of this iconic Victorian viaduct.”
Further south, minor disruption over the months of July and August saw work carried out to safeguard the future of historic Mill Stream Viaduct at Ashurst station near Tunbridge Wells.
The viaduct was built in 1888 to carry the railway over the stream at the north end of the station platform.
The works involved the structure being repaired and repainted, with the decking replaced and the track lifted and replaced to keep trains using it for at least the next 50 years.