Wharncliffe Viaduct

Wharncliffe Viaduct
Looking north, July 2006
Coordinates	51°30′39″N 0°20′39″W / 51.5108°N 0.3442°W / 51.5108; -0.3442
Carries	Great Western Main Line
Crosses	River Brent
Locale	Hanwell, London
Maintained by	Network Rail
Heritage status	Grade I listed building
Characteristics
Design	arch bridge
Total length	270 metres (890 ft)
Width	17 metres (56 ft)
Longest span	21 metres (69 ft)
History
Construction start	1836
Construction end	1837
Location

The Wharncliffe Viaduct is a brick-built viaduct that carries the Great Western Main Line railway across the Brent Valley, between Hanwell and Southall, Ealing, UK, at an elevation of 20 metres (66 ft). The viaduct, built in 1836–7, was constructed for the opening of the Great Western Railway (GWR). It is situated between Southall and Hanwell stations, the latter station being only a very short distance away to the east.

The viaduct was the first major structural design by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the first building contract to be let on the GWR project, and the first major engineering work to be completed. It was also the first railway viaduct to be built with hollow piers,^[1] a feature much appreciated by a colony of bats which has since taken up residence within.^{[citation needed]}