Sydney Harbour Bridge Vs Tunnel debate October 1921

From the Kearney Files

Sydney 7th October 1921

THE BRIDGE
TO COPE WITH IMMENSE TRAFFIC

41,000,000 PASSENGER JOURNEYS A YEAR

On the eve of the calling for the construction of the North Shore Bridge, the designer of the bridge, Mr. J. J. C. Bradfield, delivered an illustrated lecture at the Protestant Hall, Crow's Nest, last evening. After briefly reviewing the history of the project, he indicated that in the primary object of handling traffic expeditiously and economically the bridge had great advantages over a tunnel.
Mr. Bradfield stated that the passenger journeys across the harbour during the past 20 years had increased from 16 1/2 millions to 41 millions per annum, an expansion of practically 150%. When the bridge was constructed the transcontinental limited express would start at Rockhampton on its run of 4020 miles to Albury, and would pass through Sydney via the bridge. Sydney would be a wayside station.
Describing the bridge, Mr. Bradfield said that the main piers, located on Dawes Point and Milson's Point, would be founded on solid rock about  20 feet below sea - level, the harbour being crossed in one span 1600 feet in length. This span would contain as much steel as the whole railway bridges on the North Coast railway from West Maitland to Grafton. The centre of the span would be ,170 feet above high water level. The Commonwealth Bank, if placed on pontoons, would pass under the bridge quite easily. There would be four railway tracks, a motor roadway  and a footway on the bridge, and the normal maximum load on it would be about 10,000 tons. The cost was estimated to be about £6,000,000, of which £2,000,000 would go to provide the roadways and footways.


Comments