Burdekin Bridge

For the rail bridge near Charters Towers, see Burdekin River Rail Bridge.

Burdekin Bridge
Burdekin Bridge
Coordinates19°38′25″S 147°23′41″E / 19.6404°S 147.3946°E / -19.6404; 147.3946 (Burdekin Bridge)
Carries(1) Bruce Highway
Motor vehicles, Railway
CrossesBurdekin River
Localebetween the towns of Ayr and Home Hill, Queensland, Australia
Other name(s)Burdekin River Bridge or the Silver Link
Preceded byInkerman Bridge
Characteristics
DesignTruss bridge
MaterialSteel
Total length
  • Total - 3,620 feet (1,103 m)
  • Main spans - 2,500 feet (762.0 m)[1]
  • Approaches - 3 + 8
Longest span250 feet (76.2 m)
No. of spans10 main spans and 22 approach spans[2]
Piers in water9
History
DesignerHarry Lowe, Noel Ullman, Bill Hansen
Construction startApril 1947
Construction end1957
Opened27 March 1957[3][4][5]
Statistics
Daily traffic7000
TollNo
Location
Map

The Burdekin Bridge (known as the Burdekin River Bridge or Silver Link)[6] spans the Burdekin River between the towns of Ayr (locality of McDesme) to the north and Home Hill to the south, both in the Shire of Burdekin, Queensland, Australia. Located on the Bruce Highway which is part of Highway 1, it is an important link in the national road network. It is a road-rail bridge which provides high flood immunity link between north and south Queensland.[1]

The Bridge was completed in 1957. Construction began 10 years earlier in 1947.[7] At 3,620 feet (1,103 m) in length, it is one of the longest multi-span bridges in Australia and longer than Brisbane's Story Bridge or New South Wales's Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge. It is 46 metres shorter than Sydney's Harbour Bridge.[1][8] It is the only bridge in Australia to be built on sand.[6]

  1. ^ a b c "Burdekin River Bridge: maintenance and rehabilitation project". Department of Transport and Main Roads, Queensland. Archived from the original on 22 September 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
  2. ^ "BIG UNDERTAKING". The Proserpine Guardian. Vol. 42, no. 2837. Queensland, Australia. 14 February 1947. p. 1. Archived from the original on 19 July 2022. Retrieved 19 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ "News and Notes From the N.R.M.A." The St. George Call. Vol. 53, no. 16. New South Wales, Australia. 18 April 1957. p. 6. Archived from the original on 19 July 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ "Burdekin Bridge". Burdekin Shire Council. Archived from the original on 15 October 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference kgbo1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b Lawson, Catherine (7 November 2013). "Highway One: the mighty Burdekin River". Australian Geographic. Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  7. ^ "BURDEKIN BRIDGE". Bowen Independent. Vol. 44, no. 4211. Queensland, Australia. 4 April 1947. p. 4. Archived from the original on 19 July 2022. Retrieved 19 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ "Burdekin River Bridge maintenance" (PDF). Main Roads. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2017.