ha ha. maybe someone thought the wings could "dual operate" as a gallows with ropes from the wings with pill-box observation deck ? Seriously it does look like a D-day pill-box on the Normandy cliffs in WWII.
maybe it opens/closes so fast it would be over in a few seconds ? Maybe everyone misses it as its wings fly by. Seriously tho, this review is spot on. The cost of it all is amazing....and you left out the 3x estimates "cost" generally applied in anything like real engineering. Cheers.
Why do you need that when you could just dig underground bypasses? With that amount of money, that’s equally doable and requires way less maintenance costs, and wait I guess they can’t launder money without this.
I live in Lowestoft. And for all its flaws and delays, it is not an overtstatement to say this has totally changed the town. A few weeks ago if you wanted to drive across town, you would be sat in traffic for a minimum of 15mins, sometimes upto 30. It is now less than 5 and freed up the whole town!
Yep - If I stood on my roof, and my son on his 'tother side, I reckon we could wave. To drive there often took 45 mins. The only snag is the sea side bascule bridge keeps breaking down as it does have parts that wear out, and they have!
ALL economies are headed down. Britain once had many of the best systems in the world - scientific, industrial, management of empire. Now legacy system are like a millstone around the UK's neck. Yes the EC didnt much help due to its mania for harmonization, but UK could have led the EC and much of the world into doing new systems right. Read The Innovator's Dilemma, this is demonstrated right there.
The bridge is fantastic for Lowestoft, the traffic is flowing much better now, and Yes, we are a seaside town with beautiful beaches. It is a hidden gem in Suffolk, why not pay it a visit.
It just isn’t, the seafront is run down with abandoned buildings and graffiti. Not to mention london road south and marine parade being as rough as it is. Lowestoft makes Yarmouth look like paradise.
Have to disagree on that, we have a well kept promenade, lovely beach , nice cafes. Some streets may be run down but we are blessed with a lovely beach area.
@@stephenholt4670 see I dont get that because Im local and it just isn’t good, Gorleston beach is far, far better. But each to their own, if you enjoyed it then good on you
Infrastructure cost so much to build because of the way we do things here. NIMBYs, plan changes , environmental assessments, contract weirdness etc, etc.
You failed to mention any important people involved on the project being "on the take". Even on a small job building a bridge in a deadbeat backwater town someone will be having their palms crossed with silver.
A lot of it is because we pay the private sector to do everything, including take the risk when it goes wrong. If some of this was done by the civil service, the private sector costs won't need to be as high and the risk is taken by the government. But after 40 odd years of "efficiency savings" and "cutting red tape" which ultimately resulted in laying off half the civil service, there's no competent left to do this as they all now work in the private sector.
@@charlestaylor8059 Australia says that it uses that system too. But the reality is that the Private Sector is unwilling to actually take the risk, so the relevant Govt loans the money to the Private Sector, in a sort of "if everything turns poo-poo, no need to ever pay the money back" arrangement. That way, the Private Sector always makes a sh!tload of money, without having to take on any actual risk.
@@charlestaylor8059At the time the civil service were making staff redundant the same staff were coming back on double the salary paid by private companies.
Thanks John. Three elements of Project Management - Cost, Quality, and Schedule of which only one will be met - looks like, except for the control tower, they went for quality. And, the 'gull wing' counterbalance weights look so much better than the ugly blocks of concrete that are usually used on this type of bridge.
Hi Great Vlog Jon. Perhaps when it's finally finished you can come up and review the Grantham Southern Bypass. Started it in 2016 was supposed to be finished in 2023 now completion date is late 2025. It's only a few miles long but it has to go over a river and train line. Didn't survey the land correctly and it all started sinking Fun fact. Grantham Canal to River Trent over 30 miles long. Hand dug and I think at least 16 locks. Took 3 and half years to build, in late 1700's.
London to Birmingham line was started in 1833 and completed in 1838. All done with manual/animal labour and only gunpowder as an explosive. Meanwhile in the 2020’s HS2 is incomplete despite machinery and better explosives for making tunnels.
That exit off the A1 that's still being built baffled me for years, drove past it the other week and thought 'why?' It had a single truck on it though, so all is well.
@@ninebobsvids Thanks for your info. I've only been watching Jon for a few months, Not caught up with all his vlogs. Nothing much seems to have changed since his vlog. So I'm not holding my breath about the bypass being opened in 2025.
Hi John, you are getting too bloody good, at this make boring stuff interesting, 😉I'm an ex HGV driver that used to do a collection run, wk/day afternoons, 1st collection 15:00 Great Yarmouth, 2nd collection Felixstowe Docks asap, to return and tip in a well known Peterborough producer, So the trip at the start of rush hour(if GY was a quick load)was fun time when I reached Lowestoft(furthest town east of the Meridian in Britain you know)as car commuters always love sharing the roads with HGV's, Keep it up mate, toddle pip
Cool! Proud to be Dutch 🙂 PS: we also manufacture tunnels, even with four lanes. Those never have to open for ships and would solve all problems for the next 50-100 years. But, yeah, Brexit, covid, supply issues, etc.
Lowestoft is in Norfolk, so it's got heavy, wet soil and a VERY flat landscape. If you dig a hole, it'll take forever and fill with water as you go. If you try and build a tunnel, it'll flood.
@@RoseSolane To be fair, there was a tunnel in the north of the Netherlands which was closed for a while because of ground water pushing up the road surface. It's now being repaired and the costs are already six times higher than estimated. Funnily, there was no public procurement "as this was an emergency". Good news for the tunnel repair company!
Funny you should mention the Berlin style control tower. On the old lifting east bridge i saw a few cock ups over the years,mainly small sailing yaughts following the orange hulled medium size fishing vessel slipstream from the dry dock area out to sea. Probably just the Control Tower not seeing the yaught and wanting to get the bridge back down asap to avoid a traffic gridlock,but a few yaughts lost their mast,cut down by the bridge lowering as they tried to sneak through. This might explain the height of the new bridge.
Was there the other day. Pretty impressive structure. But love "Its a seaside resort, no it isn't". But The tram museum at Carlton Colville is pretty cool
Great video John. I live in Lowestoft and the traffic flow seems to be much better. A few hundred meters from the bridge there used to be a ship yard called Richards. ASDA and a car dealership stand there now. My father served his apprenticeship there as a machinist. The chaps who worked there would have shuddered to see the fabrications being shipped in from overseas. 😢 😢
I like brutalist structures when they're not damaged or not maintained I would say st peters court also in Lowestoft is alright but it's not at all in good shape and is being torn down next year
I live in Yarmouth, but work in Beccles, the new bridge does really help if you're going through Oulton Broad, you can almost breeze through now. Its rather nice. Better than the Yarmouth one to nowhere.
Last time I was in Lowestoft... Princess Anne opened the south pier musical fountains dressed like inspector Cleuseau... and after unveiling the plaque the first music played to dancing fountains was the pink panther theme..... and there you have it... ...that was back in April/May ish 2007... but hey... we got treated to a lay on of cocktails and Volaven.... small filled pastries and scones...
There is an old bascule bridge near me that was recently decommissioned. It was quite large for its day due to having railroad tracks for commuter trains. It is still there but can no longer move. It's quite obsolete due to changing use of the river and a new pedestrian bridge that has a lower height to the river making passage of anything larger than a rowboat impossible. Kayaks can still pass under if they duck at high tide.
Great video Jon. You forgot to mention that the bridge now forms part of the A12 that's been realigned and runs up to the Blundeston Road/Corton Long Lane Roundabout where it meets the A47. It finally completes what was the Lowestoft spine road proposal, plans on which were published in a Waveney District Council town development document in the 1980s (I got a copy for my GCSE Geography and I think my mum still has it). I grew up in one of the villages around Lowestoft and we always pronounced Lothing as "loathing". I think you are spot on with the description of the bridge control tower. I don't think it's going to weather terribly well; I can foresee it getting painted/pebble dashed in a decade or so.
It is very important to have a thorough examination of all the options that will not be taken forward on a project so that they can be discounted in favour of an option that was not considered in the study but suggested by someone senior over lunch.
Speaking of bridges i would love your take on the clusterduck that is the twin sails bridge in Poole Harbour....overpriced and constantly breaking. Yet the smaller one a short distance away is over 100 years old and is working fine
I like it a lot. Always a supporter of trying new designs, even if they don't work out. The attempt to make something unconventional is what drives innovation
We regularly book a barge on the Broads and for the last few summers I've noticed a bridge that always seems to be up. This summer we moored at Oulton Broad and I walked to a nearby supermarket for supplies (liquid). It was fascinating to see it so close and without traffic. Yes, it does look quite stark but in keep with a lot of the engineering projects in East Anglia, particularly the roads. The whole drive in on the A14 seems very stark flat and functional; like driving through northern Europe. In contrast to the roads and motorways I use around North lancs and Cumbria. On another note. We still have not forgotten M6, J36...
Many thanks Jon for making this episode. The bridge formed part of the route for the Tour of Britain this year (2024) and it was interesting to find out more about it.
There is a beautiful example of one of these bridges between Wapping and Limehouse, in London, at Shadwell Basin. Built in the 1930's, then neglected, requiring restoration in the 1980's. It is a lot smaller than this modern version, but is worth visiting for those who love bridge engineering and the history of the London Docklands. It is painted a striking red color, so cannot be missed. It is close to the Prospect of Whitby, a pub originally built in 1520, then rebuilt many times, so is a great place to enjoy a drink on the Thames, while soaking up the history.
I used to be a bridge guard and that control tower looks fine to me compared to the ramshackle huts we usually get. If it's warm, you have reserved parking nearby, a fridge and a toilet you can use without opening a hatch or climbing a ladder, you're golden. And I love this design, but I fear you'll need daily inspections because people WILL be trying to crush things with it.
As someone who lives in Oulton Broad, I can confirm that this bridge has FAR exceeded most of people’s expectations as to how it would improve traffic in the town, especially along Beccles Road. It’s been an absolute God send. Also, this was constructed at the same time as Great Yarmouth’s third bridge crossing, a few miles up the coast, and by the same construction company.
Thanks for the laughs and spilling the tea on this! Those damn rotaries/roundabouts SUCK! They are building them everywhere in my area and they are in no way more effective or safer than the stops that were there and then there's issues with large loads like this. Grrr!
South Lowestoft has a small beech resort. North Lowestoft is docks and a nature reserve. While sorta a beech resort, Great Yarmouth, 10 miles to the north supercedes it.
Smashing looking thing. I like it a lot. As for the costs and delays, I can quite understand why that happened. All things said, I think that is still a success.
glad to see you made it to my hometown, its pronounced Lake "low" thing..... the north side of the river is technically an island called Lothingland as its boardered by the sea, and 3 rivers
Freaking me out a bit last episode you were in Bridport where I live and now you're doing an episode on a bridge in a town I grew up in. Actually had a school trip to one of the bridges and rember them saying then they were plans for a new bridge. This must have been mid 90's
Hello John, this type of bridge, the Scherzer Rolling Lift Bridge was used to carry both single carriageway road and single track rail traffic across the River Swale to the Isle of Sheppey (Kent) being opened in 1904. I remember travelling across it in the 1950s. The road was traffic light controlled due to the narrow width. This bridge suffered from collisions from shipping that caused closures of the bridge at such times for remedial work. This all changed on 20th April 1960 when the 'new' Kingsferry Bridge was officially opened by HRH The Duchess of Kent. The ‘new’ bridge, constructed by John Howard & Co. Ltd, was 650ft long and lifted the 450 tons road and rail section vertically by counterbalance mechanisms housed in the four towers. This bridge is still in use but has been replaced by ‘The Sheppey Crossing’ elevated roadway. All traces of the old 1904 Scherzer bridge have gone except on those of old road and rail track routes seen on Google satellite maps. I saw the 1960 lift bridge being built during trips to the Isle of Sheppey. Best wishes from Oxfordshire.
I visited Lowestoft a few years ago for one reason only: to see the Birds Eye fish finger factory. The security guard gave me a phone number for an employment agency because they were looking for new staff, which is apparently the case 52 weeks of the year. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to catch a glimpse of Captain Birdseye. 🐠🐟🐟
You want to do a article about the a46 Stoneleigh junction, a 2nd bridge to make the junction a roundabout, was installed, lifted into place February 2023, and they are unable to complete, due to not being able to source hardcore to complete the works, also planned work for the new lighting, and on the day it was to be done, they found they had no one to do the work.
It’s also another piece of weird expenditure. Used it at least twice a week for about 6 years before the flyover was built. Never really got held up before it was built. Now it’s a regular problem at the Eastern end where the traffic flow has moved to. Ahh that will be …… Brexit/Covid etc. Fantastic excuses.
Isn't that the normal way to do things these days? A bit of the Autobahn A21 couldn't open on schedule because they had no-one to paint the stripes... Well, I say on schedule, because I have no idea how many decades behind they are now.
Perhaps part of the hold up was finding the cadre of Gull-Wing Bridge Operators. A.I. wrote the job specifications, requiring potential applicants to fly and quarrel over food. 😂🤣😎
It's not commonly known but it was designed with two purposes in mind. At Christmas time, local residents are able to take their Brazil nuts (which are notoriously difficult to crack) and place them on the track. Then, a quick call to the control rower and within minutes it's 'job done'.
No, the bridge doesn't move in the video.
Why not? Was “because we’re crap” meant for the video too??? I waited to the end and you gave us the roundabout instead???!?!?!
@sysedteg8215 thanks for watching.
"Berlin Wall watch tower look. Nailed it." Awesome Jon.
Very similar looking to the Nazi fortifications on Guernsey.
Pill boxes all around the north coast of france.
Inspired by various Atlantic Wall constructs on the Channel islands.
@@fredericksaxton3991 thats the one i was thinking of
ha ha. maybe someone thought the wings could "dual operate" as a gallows with ropes from the wings with pill-box observation deck ?
Seriously it does look like a D-day pill-box on the Normandy cliffs in WWII.
Shame you didn't get any footage of the bridge opening/closing. That would have been wicked, sweet, awesome.
It's only been opened four times since it opened.
maybe it opens/closes so fast it would be over in a few seconds ? Maybe everyone misses it as its wings fly by.
Seriously tho, this review is spot on.
The cost of it all is amazing....and you left out the 3x estimates "cost" generally applied in anything like real engineering.
Cheers.
Why do you need that when you could just dig underground bypasses?
With that amount of money, that’s equally doable and requires way less maintenance costs, and wait I guess they can’t launder money without this.
@@MP-vc4nu exactly
@@MP-vc4nu Local councils and laundering or embezzlement is just 'the way' I'm afraid. This county's rich need a bit more money... ALWAYS MOOOOOORE
I live in Lowestoft. And for all its flaws and delays, it is not an overtstatement to say this has totally changed the town. A few weeks ago if you wanted to drive across town, you would be sat in traffic for a minimum of 15mins, sometimes upto 30. It is now less than 5 and freed up the whole town!
Oh dear, what a shame never mind.
@apuldram what are you talking about you moron?!? Its a good thing.
Get out of bed 15 mins earlier...😳
The 15 minute city they dreamed of😅
@@MummaBear
Wingnut
I’m Dutch and have never seen a bridge like this in the Netherlands. So thank you for beta testing this concept.
Do you do refunds?
@ No, not after using it.
I am English and I have seen this style of bridge in the Netherlands. But maybe I am a bit more of a bridge-spotter than you?
@ Serious? Any idea where, so I can try and see it with google streetview.
go to Sete in the south of France. There are few of them dotted about. (Pedantry: they are more in the older truss style, not the sleeker concrete)
Yay I’m from Lowestoft!!!! The bridge has made so much difference to the town.
Yep - If I stood on my roof, and my son on his 'tother side, I reckon we could wave. To drive there often took 45 mins. The only snag is the sea side bascule bridge keeps breaking down as it does have parts that wear out, and they have!
Yeah! Folk can get out quicker!😂
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Lake “Loathing”. Am I right?
presumably so they can leave….👍😜😉🤣
I just love Jon's ruthless honesty about Britain's inability to get things done and 'properly'. Well done AS.
ALL economies are headed down. Britain once had many of the best systems in the world - scientific, industrial, management of empire. Now legacy system are like a millstone around the UK's neck. Yes the EC didnt much help due to its mania for harmonization, but UK could have led the EC and much of the world into doing new systems right. Read The Innovator's Dilemma, this is demonstrated right there.
The Control Tower reminds me of the Atlantic Wall defences built by the Germans in WWII...
Exactly the look we wanted. It is the point closest to ze ppl
Great prototype of the great wall of China... not, great wall of English coastline that can block all the illegal immgrants 🙃
Atlantic wall defences built by the Germans during the 2nd minor disagreement
It’s definitely got those vibes of the German defences in jersey!
The bridge is fantastic for Lowestoft, the traffic is flowing much better now, and Yes, we are a seaside town with beautiful beaches. It is a hidden gem in Suffolk, why not pay it a visit.
It just isn’t, the seafront is run down with abandoned buildings and graffiti. Not to mention london road south and marine parade being as rough as it is. Lowestoft makes Yarmouth look like paradise.
Have to disagree on that, we have a well kept promenade, lovely beach , nice cafes. Some streets may be run down but we are blessed with a lovely beach area.
@@annecossey2528 It isn't. You don't even live there.
@@re_stricted I spent a day on the beach in Lowestoft a couple of years ago and it was absolutely lovely. Not all seaside resorts in the UK are trash.
@@stephenholt4670 see I dont get that because Im local and it just isn’t good, Gorleston beach is far, far better. But each to their own, if you enjoyed it then good on you
"Because we're crap" Nailed it..
i was about to say that, the UK really is terrible at anything infrastructure related
@@TedJMAustralia would be a close second.
@@stefantrnacek1394 unless the Chinese gets involved
We so are too, mainly because the need for backhanders until the money runs dry then onto the next company to bankrupt...
@@stefantrnacek1394 Meanwhile bridges in America are crumbling. :(
Very Bauhaus in design, especially the control tower. I like it.
Infrastructure cost so much to build because of the way we do things here. NIMBYs, plan changes , environmental assessments, contract weirdness etc, etc.
You failed to mention any important people involved on the project being "on the take". Even on a small job building a bridge in a deadbeat backwater town someone will be having their palms crossed with silver.
A lot of it is because we pay the private sector to do everything, including take the risk when it goes wrong. If some of this was done by the civil service, the private sector costs won't need to be as high and the risk is taken by the government. But after 40 odd years of "efficiency savings" and "cutting red tape" which ultimately resulted in laying off half the civil service, there's no competent left to do this as they all now work in the private sector.
@@charlestaylor8059 Australia says that it uses that system too. But the reality is that the Private Sector is unwilling to actually take the risk, so the relevant Govt loans the money to the Private Sector, in a sort of "if everything turns poo-poo, no need to ever pay the money back" arrangement. That way, the Private Sector always makes a sh!tload of money, without having to take on any actual risk.
@@philhawley1219exactly.
@@charlestaylor8059At the time the civil service were making staff redundant the same staff were coming back on double the salary paid by private companies.
I like how the bridge looks. Very eye catching and kind of iconic (in good ways).
The sarcasm & irony score is off the charts … brilliant 😂
Thanks John. Three elements of Project Management - Cost, Quality, and Schedule of which only one will be met - looks like, except for the control tower, they went for quality.
And, the 'gull wing' counterbalance weights look so much better than the ugly blocks of concrete that are usually used on this type of bridge.
Love the look of this bridge.
How very me you are Jon. Accurate and funny with a hint of irony. Oh and knowledge stuff thrown in to keep me entertained.
Top job.
Hi Great Vlog Jon. Perhaps when it's finally finished you can come up and review the Grantham Southern Bypass. Started it in 2016 was supposed to be finished in 2023 now completion date is late 2025. It's only a few miles long but it has to go over a river and train line. Didn't survey the land correctly and it all started sinking
Fun fact. Grantham Canal to River Trent over 30 miles long. Hand dug and I think at least 16 locks. Took 3 and half years to build, in late 1700's.
London to Birmingham line was started in 1833 and completed in 1838. All done with manual/animal labour and only gunpowder as an explosive.
Meanwhile in the 2020’s HS2 is incomplete despite machinery and better explosives for making tunnels.
That exit off the A1 that's still being built baffled me for years, drove past it the other week and thought 'why?'
It had a single truck on it though, so all is well.
@@philsharp758You realise that HS2 is being built to a much higher standard? Our two centuries old railway lines are plagued with problems
Jon did do a vid when they opened the new junction: ruclips.net/video/M2jff7YOyKI/видео.htmlsi=qTQxCa-cmdpZCEPn
@@ninebobsvids Thanks for your info. I've only been watching Jon for a few months, Not caught up with all his vlogs. Nothing much seems to have changed since his vlog. So I'm not holding my breath about the bypass being opened in 2025.
Hi John, you are getting too bloody good, at this make boring stuff interesting, 😉I'm an ex HGV driver that used to do a collection run, wk/day afternoons, 1st collection 15:00 Great Yarmouth, 2nd collection Felixstowe Docks asap, to return and tip in a well known Peterborough producer, So the trip at the start of rush hour(if GY was a quick load)was fun time when I reached Lowestoft(furthest town east of the Meridian in Britain you know)as car commuters always love sharing the roads with HGV's, Keep it up mate, toddle pip
They look like two giant shelf brackets!
Cannot unsee that now
Yes, that's exactly what the bridge looks like. The whole thing probably came from IKEA.
Odd angle for a shelf.
Cool! Proud to be Dutch 🙂
PS: we also manufacture tunnels, even with four lanes. Those never have to open for ships and would solve all problems for the next 50-100 years. But, yeah, Brexit, covid, supply issues, etc.
No room for a tunnel there.
Lowestoft is in Norfolk, so it's got heavy, wet soil and a VERY flat landscape. If you dig a hole, it'll take forever and fill with water as you go.
If you try and build a tunnel, it'll flood.
@@Skorpychan Ever been in The Netherlands? In many places with four lane tunnels it has heavy wet soil and it is very flat 😁
@@RoseSolane To be fair, there was a tunnel in the north of the Netherlands which was closed for a while because of ground water pushing up the road surface. It's now being repaired and the costs are already six times higher than estimated. Funnily, there was no public procurement "as this was an emergency". Good news for the tunnel repair company!
@@RoseSolane😂
Suddenly we find ourselves looking at a ‘Romantic Weekend Away’ in Lowestoft 🤣🤣🤣
Strange bridge👍
Thanks a lot, really appreciate that! :)
Funny you should mention the Berlin style control tower. On the old lifting east bridge i saw a few cock ups over the years,mainly small sailing yaughts following the orange hulled medium size fishing vessel slipstream from the dry dock area out to sea. Probably just the Control Tower not seeing the yaught and wanting to get the bridge back down asap to avoid a traffic gridlock,but a few yaughts lost their mast,cut down by the bridge lowering as they tried to sneak through. This might explain the height of the new bridge.
Was there the other day. Pretty impressive structure. But love "Its a seaside resort, no it isn't". But The tram museum at Carlton Colville is pretty cool
Tremendous, great subject and delivered with customary style and panache
Some people describe Lowestoft as a seaside resort.
It isn't!
Naiked it!!!!😂
Nuked or nailed?
Fantastic looking bridge. Design is unique.
Go over it every day, best thing happen to my town 😂😂😂😂 all the excitement we get
The long winter evenings will just whizz by.
Do you not have traffic lights?
Thanks
Cheers mate, nice one!
Thank you for making me smile on a dreadful day.
Great video John. I live in Lowestoft and the traffic flow seems to be much better. A few hundred meters from the bridge there used to be a ship yard called Richards. ASDA and a car dealership stand there now. My father served his apprenticeship there as a machinist. The chaps who worked there would have shuddered to see the fabrications being shipped in from overseas. 😢 😢
Love this bridge! Brutalism!
I like brutalist structures when they're not damaged or not maintained
I would say st peters court also in Lowestoft is alright but it's not at all in good shape and is being torn down next year
It is a very elegant design, I must say.
That control tower looks like it should be sat atop a Citroen CX...
Very creative, very inventive - and the bridge is good too.
LOL at the tower dig. Again, loving your content, Jon.
Your funniest video yet !!! I had the misfortune of living, sorry surviving, in Lowestoft. So know exactly how bad the traffic is.
Yes, the bridge has very appealing look and as for the 'Watch Tower' you were spot on.
If the bits and wing parts start to rust it will add a demonic air to the wings, horns, or mano cornuta.
Paint them red on Halloween ?
5 year old me wants to put a matchbox car into that rack to see how flat I could get it. That would be fwicked sweet awesome. Great vid as always.
Did they take one of those N*zi mega structure observation towers from the Channel Islands and put it beside that bridge?
Would love to see it opening.
I live in Yarmouth, but work in Beccles, the new bridge does really help if you're going through Oulton Broad, you can almost breeze through now.
Its rather nice. Better than the Yarmouth one to nowhere.
Hello, bridge!
Last time I was in Lowestoft... Princess Anne opened the south pier musical fountains dressed like inspector Cleuseau... and after unveiling the plaque the first music played to dancing fountains was the pink panther theme..... and there you have it...
...that was back in April/May ish 2007... but hey... we got treated to a lay on of cocktails and Volaven.... small filled pastries and scones...
Nice bridge
There is an old bascule bridge near me that was recently decommissioned. It was quite large for its day due to having railroad tracks for commuter trains. It is still there but can no longer move. It's quite obsolete due to changing use of the river and a new pedestrian bridge that has a lower height to the river making passage of anything larger than a rowboat impossible. Kayaks can still pass under if they duck at high tide.
There's one in Norwich like that
Great video Jon. You forgot to mention that the bridge now forms part of the A12 that's been realigned and runs up to the Blundeston Road/Corton Long Lane Roundabout where it meets the A47. It finally completes what was the Lowestoft spine road proposal, plans on which were published in a Waveney District Council town development document in the 1980s (I got a copy for my GCSE Geography and I think my mum still has it).
I grew up in one of the villages around Lowestoft and we always pronounced Lothing as "loathing".
I think you are spot on with the description of the bridge control tower. I don't think it's going to weather terribly well; I can foresee it getting painted/pebble dashed in a decade or so.
Those lovely feasibility studies again 🫠
Just the British way of doing things. The Dutch are civil engineering masters bending the land and the sea to their will.
It is very important to have a thorough examination of all the options that will not be taken forward on a project so that they can be discounted in favour of an option that was not considered in the study but suggested by someone senior over lunch.
Speaking of bridges i would love your take on the clusterduck that is the twin sails bridge in Poole Harbour....overpriced and constantly breaking.
Yet the smaller one a short distance away is over 100 years old and is working fine
The control tower is more "Top Gear camping special Jeremy Clarkson Citroen CX" to me.
Lowestoft did have Eastern Coach Works, which at one time was the biggest builder of bus and coach bodies in the UK.
I like it a lot. Always a supporter of trying new designs, even if they don't work out. The attempt to make something unconventional is what drives innovation
i like it too...I hear its rarely used though
Control tower looks like Jeremy Clarkson's Multi-story motor home from top gear.
Hi Jon, stunning looking bridge
Engineering to the highest standards
Great as always
We regularly book a barge on the Broads and for the last few summers I've noticed a bridge that always seems to be up. This summer we moored at Oulton Broad and I walked to a nearby supermarket for supplies (liquid). It was fascinating to see it so close and without traffic.
Yes, it does look quite stark but in keep with a lot of the engineering projects in East Anglia, particularly the roads. The whole drive in on the A14 seems very stark flat and functional; like driving through northern Europe. In contrast to the roads and motorways I use around North lancs and Cumbria.
On another note. We still have not forgotten M6, J36...
Many thanks Jon for making this episode. The bridge formed part of the route for the Tour of Britain this year (2024) and it was interesting to find out more about it.
They tried a similar thing with the "Twin Sails" bridge in Poole. Also late. Also over-budget. Always broken.
There is a beautiful example of one of these bridges between Wapping and Limehouse, in London, at Shadwell Basin. Built in the 1930's, then neglected, requiring restoration in the 1980's. It is a lot smaller than this modern version, but is worth visiting for those who love bridge engineering and the history of the London Docklands. It is painted a striking red color, so cannot be missed. It is close to the Prospect of Whitby, a pub originally built in 1520, then rebuilt many times, so is a great place to enjoy a drink on the Thames, while soaking up the history.
I think that control building looks more like German WW2 defences on the northern coast of France.
Love the crush points on the other side of the pivot!
i like the way the "tracks" are already rusting...
I think that 3 options being considered and not taken forward is the perfect result for a feasibility study. It did its job very well.
I used to be a bridge guard and that control tower looks fine to me compared to the ramshackle huts we usually get. If it's warm, you have reserved parking nearby, a fridge and a toilet you can use without opening a hatch or climbing a ladder, you're golden. And I love this design, but I fear you'll need daily inspections because people WILL be trying to crush things with it.
As someone who lives in Oulton Broad, I can confirm that this bridge has FAR exceeded most of people’s expectations as to how it would improve traffic in the town, especially along Beccles Road. It’s been an absolute God send.
Also, this was constructed at the same time as Great Yarmouth’s third bridge crossing, a few miles up the coast, and by the same construction company.
Thanks for the laughs and spilling the tea on this! Those damn rotaries/roundabouts SUCK! They are building them everywhere in my area and they are in no way more effective or safer than the stops that were there and then there's issues with large loads like this. Grrr!
I used to live in Lowestoft, I must go and have a look at this new bridge. Traffic was dreadful when the bridges were lifted.
I'm a big fan of the way it rolls/lifts up, very neat.
This is the best video I've ever _seen_ about anything
South Lowestoft has a small beech resort. North Lowestoft is docks and a nature reserve. While sorta a beech resort, Great Yarmouth, 10 miles to the north supercedes it.
To be fair we've got the marshes as well in oulton Broad
Smashing looking thing. I like it a lot. As for the costs and delays, I can quite understand why that happened. All things said, I think that is still a success.
The control tower looks like clarksons old mobile home on top gear
I'm shocked such a thing went over budget
Even more shocking, it was late
Just as shocking it was made abroad
Not shocking. Public works projects always go over budget. Infrastructure is costly, the alternative more so.
@@markmartindale7215 Whoosh!
'Lowestoft, a seaside resort' well said Jon!
glad to see you made it to my hometown, its pronounced Lake "low" thing..... the north side of the river is technically an island called Lothingland as its boardered by the sea, and 3 rivers
At last - a reason to visit Lowestoft!
awesome find Jon
What a fantastic bridge - I need to go to Lowestoft now....
Jon, you are the best story-teller on RUclips…..blah, blah, blah, blah!! 👍
Congrats on 150k subscribers Jon.
Freaking me out a bit last episode you were in Bridport where I live and now you're doing an episode on a bridge in a town I grew up in. Actually had a school trip to one of the bridges and rember them saying then they were plans for a new bridge. This must have been mid 90's
Plans for the third bridge date back to the 30s
@@moltenriches1918
Hello John, this type of bridge, the Scherzer Rolling Lift Bridge was used to carry both single carriageway road and single track rail traffic across the River Swale to the Isle of Sheppey (Kent) being opened in 1904. I remember travelling across it in the 1950s. The road was traffic light controlled due to the narrow width. This bridge suffered from collisions from shipping that caused closures of the bridge at such times for remedial work. This all changed on 20th April 1960 when the 'new' Kingsferry Bridge was officially opened by HRH The Duchess of Kent.
The ‘new’ bridge, constructed by John Howard & Co. Ltd, was 650ft long and lifted the 450 tons road and rail section vertically by counterbalance mechanisms housed in the four towers.
This bridge is still in use but has been replaced by ‘The Sheppey Crossing’ elevated roadway. All traces of the old 1904 Scherzer bridge have gone except on those of old road and rail track routes seen on Google satellite maps.
I saw the 1960 lift bridge being built during trips to the Isle of Sheppey.
Best wishes from Oxfordshire.
This bridge is a good one
So nice to cross the town in less than an hour.😂
Awesome Video
I visited Lowestoft a few years ago for one reason only: to see the Birds Eye fish finger factory. The security guard gave me a phone number for an employment agency because they were looking for new staff, which is apparently the case 52 weeks of the year. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to catch a glimpse of Captain Birdseye.
🐠🐟🐟
Credit must go to the designers who planned the control tower by piling up some matchboxes, saving the cost of employing a proper architect.
You want to do a article about the a46 Stoneleigh junction, a 2nd bridge to make the junction a roundabout, was installed, lifted into place February 2023, and they are unable to complete, due to not being able to source hardcore to complete the works, also planned work for the new lighting, and on the day it was to be done, they found they had no one to do the work.
It’s also another piece of weird expenditure. Used it at least twice a week for about 6 years before the flyover was built. Never really got held up before it was built. Now it’s a regular problem at the Eastern end where the traffic flow has moved to. Ahh that will be …… Brexit/Covid etc. Fantastic excuses.
Isn't that the normal way to do things these days? A bit of the Autobahn A21 couldn't open on schedule because they had no-one to paint the stripes... Well, I say on schedule, because I have no idea how many decades behind they are now.
We have one of the few og bascule bridges in renfrew , just outside Glasgow. We love our swing bridge
Wonderful British humour, great vid!!
hi john great video my guy
There’s a new one at Great Yarmouth too, I worked on the CCTV there when it was being built 😊
well done, interesting & entertaining
Perhaps part of the hold up was finding the cadre of Gull-Wing Bridge Operators. A.I. wrote the job specifications, requiring potential applicants to fly and quarrel over food. 😂🤣😎
Damm, was just down the road from Lowestoft last week, if I’d seen this first would definitely have gone and had a look. Great content as per usual.
I suppose the good news is that it is interesting looking and it seems to have improved the town… now, let’s just build things on time!
14 seconds in and already laughing. love it!
It's not commonly known but it was designed with two purposes in mind. At Christmas time, local residents are able to take their Brazil nuts (which are notoriously difficult to crack) and place them on the track. Then, a quick call to the control rower and within minutes it's 'job done'.
Clever design. I like it.
I have to say, it does look kinda cool.