Severn Bridge

"Wye Bridge" redirects here. For other uses, see Wye Bridge (disambiguation).
This article is about the 1966 road bridge across the Rivers Severn and Wye between Wales and England. For the 1996 road bridge downstream of it, see Second Severn Crossing. For other uses, see Severn Bridge (disambiguation).

Severn Bridge
The Severn Bridge seen from Aust Beach, England
Coordinates51°36′33″N 02°38′18″W / 51.60917°N 2.63833°W / 51.60917; -2.63833
Carries M48 motorway (4 lanes)
National Cycle Route 4 (shared cycle path and footway)[1]
CrossesRiver Severn
River Wye
LocaleSouth West England / South East Wales
Maintained byNational Highways[2][3]
Heritage statusGrade I listed
Characteristics
DesignSuspension bridge
Total length0.99 mi (1.6 km)
Height445 ft (136 m)
Longest span3,240 ft (988 m)
Clearance below154 ft (47 m)[4]
History
ArchitectFreeman Fox and Partners in association with Mott, Hay and Anderson, consulting architect Sir Percy Thomas[5]
Constructed byJohn Howard & Co., Sir William Arrol & Co., Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company and Dorman Long
Opened8 September 1966
Statistics
Daily trafficBetween 17,155 and 17,828
(2003–2008)[6]
TollFree
Location
Map

The Severn Bridge (Welsh: Pont Hafren) is a motorway suspension bridge that spans the River Severn between South Gloucestershire in England and Monmouthshire in South East Wales. It is the original Severn road crossing between England and Wales, and took three and a half years to build,[7] at a cost of £8 million.[8] It replaced the 137-year-old Aust Ferry.

The bridge was opened in 1966 by Queen Elizabeth II.[9] For thirty years, the bridge carried the M4 motorway. It was granted Grade I listed status in 1999.[10]

Following the completion of the Second Severn Crossing, the section of motorway from Olveston in England to Magor in Wales was designated the M48.

  1. ^ "the OpenStreetMap Cycle Map". OpenCycleMap.org. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  2. ^ "Highways England network management" (PDF). gov.uk. Highways England. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  3. ^ "Severn Bridges will be owned by the government from tomorrow as tolls to be scrapped in 2018". Bristol Post. Trinity Mirror. 7 January 2018. Archived from the original on 22 April 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  4. ^ "Severn Bridge". 8 June 2005. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 8 September 2012.
  5. ^ Historic England. "Severn Bridge and Aust Viaduct, First Severn Crossing (1119760)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  6. ^ "The Impact of the Severn Tolls on the Welsh Economy" (PDF). Welsh Government. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  7. ^ "The Severn Crossing — Facts and Figures - Highways Agency". Archived from the original on 13 November 2013. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  8. ^ "Construction cost". M48 Severn Bridge – Closures to Install Cable Drying. Archived from the original on 6 March 2008. Retrieved 12 May 2008.
  9. ^ "Celebrating Her Majesty's service to engineering". Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering. 2018. Archived from the original on 7 September 2018. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference grade1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).