Richmond Bridge, London

Richmond Bridge
Coordinates	51°27′26″N 0°18′26″W / 51.45725°N 0.30732°W / 51.45725; -0.30732
Carries	A305 road
Crosses	River Thames
Locale	Richmond, London Twickenham
Maintained by	Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council
Characteristics
Design	Stone arch bridge
Material	Portland stone
Total length	300 feet (91 m)
Width	36 feet (11 m)
No. of spans	5
Piers in water	4
Clearance below	26 feet (7.9 m) at lowest astronomical tide[1]
History
Designer	James Paine, Kenton Couse
Opened	1777; 247 years ago (1777)
Statistics
Daily traffic	34,484 vehicles (2004)[2]
Listed Building – Grade I
Official name	Richmond Bridge
Designated	2 September 1952; 72 years ago (1952-09-02)
Reference no.	1180951
Location

Richmond Bridge is an 18th-century stone arch bridge that crosses the River Thames at Richmond, connecting the two halves of the present-day London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It was designed by James Paine and Kenton Couse.

The bridge, which is Grade I listed,^[3] was built between 1774 and 1777, as a replacement for a ferry crossing which connected Richmond town centre on the east bank with its neighbouring district of East Twickenham to the west. Its construction was privately funded by a tontine scheme, for which tolls were charged until 1859. Because the river meanders from its general west to east direction, flowing from southeast to northwest in this part of London, what would otherwise be known as the north and south banks are often referred to as the "Middlesex" (Twickenham) and "Surrey" (Richmond) banks respectively, named after the historic counties to which each side once belonged.

The bridge was widened and slightly flattened in 1937–40, but otherwise still conforms to its original design. The eighth Thames bridge to be built in what is now Greater London, it is today the oldest surviving Thames bridge in London.