About Craigavon Bridge
The Craigavon Bridge is one of three bridges in Derry, Northern Ireland. It crosses the River Foyle further south than the Foyle Bridge and Peace Bridge. It is one of only a few double-decker road bridges in Europe. It was named after Lord Craigavon, the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland. The present bridge began construction in the late 1920s and was finished in 1933. The lower deck of the bridge originally carried a railway line for freight wagons, but this was replaced by a road in 1968, and at each end a silhouetted mural of a railway station stands to mark the railway. On 3 July 1968, as part of a series of protests against housing conditions in Derry, the Derry Housing Action Committee (DHAC) held a sit-down protest on the newly opened second deck of the Craigavon Bridge. A pair of bronze statues forming a sculpture entitled Hands Across the Divide are situated at the west end of Craigavon Bridge in Carlisle Square and were produced by Derry sculptor Maurice Harron. RefurbishmentBetween October 1999 and August 2000, the Roads Service of the Department for Regional Development, in Phase I of a refurbishment project, concentrated on the refurbishment of the upper deck of the bridge to provide increased safety and to prolong the service life of the bridge. This included concrete and steelwork repairs, re-waterproofing of the deck to protect the steelwork from corrosion, resurfacing of both carriageway and footways. Later phases II and III concentrated on refurbishment of the lower deck and painting of the bridge. The total cost of refurbishing Craigavon Bridge was £4·2 million.
Craigavon Bridge Description
The Craigavon Bridge is one of three bridges in Derry, Northern Ireland. It crosses the River Foyle further south than the Foyle Bridge and Peace Bridge. It is one of only a few double-decker road bridges in Europe. It was named after Lord Craigavon, the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland. The present bridge began construction in the late 1920s and was finished in 1933. The lower deck of the bridge originally carried a railway line for freight wagons, but this was replaced by a road in 1968, and at each end a silhouetted mural of a railway station stands to mark the railway. On 3 July 1968, as part of a series of protests against housing conditions in Derry, the Derry Housing Action Committee (DHAC) held a sit-down protest on the newly opened second deck of the Craigavon Bridge. A pair of bronze statues forming a sculpture entitled Hands Across the Divide are situated at the west end of Craigavon Bridge in Carlisle Square and were produced by Derry sculptor Maurice Harron. RefurbishmentBetween October 1999 and August 2000, the Roads Service of the Department for Regional Development, in Phase I of a refurbishment project, concentrated on the refurbishment of the upper deck of the bridge to provide increased safety and to prolong the service life of the bridge. This included concrete and steelwork repairs, re-waterproofing of the deck to protect the steelwork from corrosion, resurfacing of both carriageway and footways. Later phases II and III concentrated on refurbishment of the lower deck and painting of the bridge. The total cost of refurbishing Craigavon Bridge was £4·2 million.