Ferrybridge, Yorkshire

Not one of the most obvious places to go for a visit but if you can find a spot under the old A1 (not the new A1M) you will find a lot to do with the social history of the area.
Under the busy flyover of the now defunct A1 road lies a 19th century road bridge, the Great North Road bridge, which once took all traffic across the Aire and Calder navigation canal. The bridge was built by a Pontefract builder, Bernard Hartley, in 1804 and was designed by the architect, John Carr of York, in 1797. It is a typical early 19th century deign but has the peculiar addition, from what looks like the 70’s, of a large grey square of concrete in the middle section, slightly obscuring the plaque in honour of the Pontefract builder. Inside are some very rusty looking pumps, I think, but not sure what they were exactly used for….

On one side of the bridge is the toll house, now used as offices, stands majestically protecting the entrance to the bridge and on the other side is towered over by the cooling towers of Ferrybridge power station. Between the power station and the toll bridge is a railway track, yet another form of transport.

Coming back toward the Aire and Calder navigation canal you walk under the concrete ‘pylons’ holding up the massive A1. These giants are an amazing feat with just the smallest of concrete sections touching the ground in a V shape. When we visited the area in 2004 the bridge was still the main route from North to South, it now has a trickle of vehicles crossing over this great beast of engineering rather than a deafening roar of traffic. The most noise came from the small A road going through Ferrybridge and past the Golden Lion pub which lies just under the concrete giants and beside the canal. Next to the pub is the lock keepers cottage which looks as though it is now a private home.

This is an amazingly small compact area of England but holds a link to all the major forms of transport over the last 3 centuries. Well worth a look if you can find it.