Humber Bridge

The Humber Bridge

There are many spectacular bridges on the National Cycle Network, most of them ex railway viaducts originally built to carry trains across valleys, rivers and estuaries. Where the railway lines have been closed and the tracks removed, they make ideal routes for cyclists, and some modern road bridges have been designed from the start with integral cycle/pedestrian paths. Here is such a bridge, carrying NCN Route 1 across the wide estuary of the River Humber.

The Humber Bridge is the longest bridge in the UK that you can cycle across, having a span of 2.2kms  and at the time of it's opening in 1981, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world.  It is now the 7th longest.

It crosses the River Humber from Hessle in South Yorkshire to Barton-on-Humber in North Lincolnshire.

View looking South from Hessle.

The underside of the bridge from the path which runs beneath it. Note the aerodynamic shape of the deck which is designed to withstand winds in excess of 100mph.

The two towers are 150ft high and although both are (of course) vertical they are actually 1.4 inches further apart at the top than the bottom due to the curvature of the earth.

The cycle/pedestrian paths are on both sides of the bridge and set below the road deck which affords some shelter from the wind.

View from the bridge looking towards Hull. with Hessle in the foreground.

                     Looking back towards Hessle from the North tower.

                 View looking Northwards from the Barton end.

The West side path looking Northwards. Note at the top of the picture, yellow warning signs on the locked gate which discourages people (who have no more sense) from trying to walk up the main suspension cables. It has been done, of course!
Since the bridge was opened, 200 people have fallen or jumped from it. Only 5 have survived.
At water level on the North bank there is a fast response RNLI boat.

April 3rd 2021

As the result of yet another suicide from the bridge on 28th April 2021 pedestrians and cyclists are no longer allowed to access the path across the bridge. This effectively cuts off NCN Route 1 as there are no alternative crossings of the River Humber.

The Cycle Ride
From Derby by train via Doncaster to Ferriby, which lies on the North bank of the Humber, a few miles West of the bridge, from where you get distant views of the bridge and can ride along the waterside path to Hessle, where the North end of the bridge stands. Best to buy a return ticket to Hessle which also has a station  so that you can catch a train back from there.
Ferriby is famed for historical reasons since it was here that a 4,000 year old boat was found, this being the oldest boat ever found in Europe.

For technophobes - see this long (43 mins) video about the construction of the bridge HERE