Foryd Bridge, Rhyl

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Foryd Bridge, Rhyl

The Foryd Bridge, crossing the river Clwyd at Rhyl, was opened in 1932. The bowstring girders provide the strength for the deck to cross the river in two spans, which rest on a central pier. The bridge was designed by RG Whitley, Flintshire’s county surveyor, whose other works include the well-preserved bascule (lifting) bridge at Queensferry.

rhyl_foryd_bridgeThe Foryd Bridge (pictured right in 2010) was fabricated by Dorman, Long and Company of Middlesbrough. This was one of several highways projects in North Wales in the 1930s which helped sustain employment during the economic downturn.

The bridge replaced an earlier toll bridge, built in 1861 at a cost of £10,000. This bridge could open to enable boat and ships to travel up river towards Rhuddlan. Its owners profited during the First World War when the Kinmel army camp, west of the river, brought extra traffic. The bridge’s condition deteriorated as traffic grew in size and volume. Eventually buses were banned, so passengers had to alight at one side and walk across to a bus on the other side.

The Foryd Bridge is now known locally as the Blue Bridge, although its girders were not painted blue originally. The A55 Expressway has relieved the bridge of long-distance through traffic, but the bridge remains a busy artery between Rhyl and the residential settlements and caravan parks to the west. In 2013 a traffic-free lifting bridge called Pont y Ddraig was completed, downstream of the Foryd Bridge.

Postcode: LL18 5BA    View Location Map

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