Severn Bridge

The Severn Bridge seen from the English side of the river. From 1966 to 1996, the bridge carried the M4 motorway. On completion of the Second Severn Crossing the motorway from Aust on the English side to Rogiet was renamed the M48

For the Ontario community, see Severn Bridge, Ontario. For Severn Crossing, see Severn crossing

The Severn Bridge (Welsh: Pont Hafren) is the suspension bridge that forms part of the original Severn crossing between England and Wales. The bridge was opened on 8 September 1966 by Queen Elizabeth II, who hailed it as the dawn of a new economic era for South Wales.

The bridge is a 5240 feet (1597 metres) long suspension bridge of conventional design, with the deck supported by two main cables slung between two steel towers. The towers are approximately 400 feet (120 m) above the river and are of hollow box construction. The deck is an orthotropic steel box girder of aerofoil shape with cantilevered cycle tracks and footway supported from the box. The shape of the bridge was determined by the designers Freeman, Fox and Partners following wind tunnel tests for the Forth Road Bridge, after the original wind tunnel model was accidentally destroyed. The Severn Bridge is in almost exactly the same location as the old Aust Ferry.

The bridge was granted Grade I listed status in 1998.

Severn Bridge looking north, Jan 2006

Trivia

* In the movie Star Wars (1977), "the sounds of the lasers were made by striking one of the suspension wires of the original Severn Bridge. The longer ones were used for the ships while the shorter ones were used for the hand guns." Quote from the IMDb trivia page for Star Wars.
* For the rock band Marillion's album Brave (1994), singer Steve Hogarth used a concept that was inspired by a radio broadcast from the Bristol Police. Quoting Steve Hogarth: "The police had picked up a young woman wandering on the Severn Bridge who refused or was unable to speak to them. In desperation the appeal was broadcast to the general public in an attempt to discover her identity." Hogarth heard it on the radio, and several years later it inspired him while he and the band were working on what was to become the Brave album. (Source: Marillion's official website)
* On 1 February 1995, Richey James Edwards, the former guitarist and key lyricist for the Welsh based rock band Manic Street Preachers disappeared and was never seen again. Though it has been debated whether or not the musician who had a well documented history of self-abuse took his life, his car was found several days later in a Motorway Service Station near the Severn Bridge which has a notorious reputation for being a suicide spot.

See also

*List of Severn bridges

External links

*ST58NE Aust M4 motorway - Images of England (photos of listed buildings)