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Worcester Park 2008
Worcester Park bridge replacement
Page last updated 8 January 2014
Just an ordinary low bridge,
not doing anyone any harm.... RF371 heads northwest for
Kingston under the old bridge on the 213 in August
1961.
Andrew Hicks has provided a set of photographs that captured the
protracted process of replacing the Worcester Park bridge.
Whilst the road below was closed for only one day, the work
extended over more than a year.
The first stage was to install the temporary
waybeams to support the rails, undertaken at the end of May and
beginning of June 1962.
For this day, bus route 213 was split at
Worcester Park. The Kingston section terminated on the
station forecourt - this is RF520. Transferring passengers
used the station footbridge.
... and the new bridge was rolled into
place.
Once the new road was completed, traffic moved
to the new section allowing double-decking of the 213 to go
ahead, on 8 May 63. An RT on the 213 is seen passing through
the works.
Meanwhile, a Green Line RF failed and was
helped out by Norbiton Garage providing RF526, seen here under the
next bridge along, the Chessington line at Malden Plough, behind
the failed bus. Andrew Hicks reports that, during the bridge
closure, the 725 ran through but was diverted via
Stoneleigh.
All photos © Andrew Hicks, many thanks for the detailed
record.
In addition, Robert Carroll has been in touch. His Flickr
site also has photos of the bridge reconstruction, including a
view from the Worcester pub, a view of the
new carriageway whilst the old is rebuilt and one of the
completed bridge with the station forecourt.
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Despite the complexity of the works, it was
only necessary to close the road for one day, 14 Oct 62.
On this Sunday, the new bridge sections were lowered into place
alongside the old.
More rail closure on 4 Nov 62, when the old
bridge was removed (note the spectators on the footbridge) ...
Once the new bridge was in place, traffic
continued to use the old road whilst the new carriageway was
built. Here, an RF heads for Kingston in the winter of
1962/3.
Of course, not everything goes to plan, and
what comes down must go somewhere. A roofbox RT on the
213A braves the flood in September 1968.
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