Morpeth Bridge

Morpeth Bridge spans the Hunter River at Morpeth near Maitland. It is a timber bridge constructed in 1898 and has an overall length of 281 metres. Morpeth Bridge is maintained by the Roads and Traffic Authority and is of significant heritage importance.

Why are these works being undertaken?

In late 2006 the RTA completed works to upgrade the bottom chords of the truss spans on Morpeth Bridge.

The upcoming works will strengthen the approach spans of the bridge. These works will minimise future routine maintenance.

Overview of the work

The works will involve upgrading 17 approach spans (one at the Morpeth Town end of the bridge and 16 at the Hinton end). The first seven spans on the Hinton end of the bridge will be replaced with an earth filled concrete retaining wall, while the piers on the remaining spans on the Hinton end will be replaced.

The upgrade of the approach spans will have a similar outcome to the recently completed Hinton Bridge Project, which was successfully rehabilitated and strengthened to increase its capacity. This success was recently acknowledged by the RTA being awarded the ‘Colin Crisp Award for Engineering Excellence’ from Engineering Heritage Australia.

History of Morpeth Bridge

Morpeth Bridge is a heritage significant timber truss bridge. It is the oldest remaining example of an overhead braced Allan truss road bridge in service, and is one of only three remaining in NSW. Allan truss bridges were an extremely successful design with major innovations made in the areas of maintenance and the cost of construction.

Timber truss bridges were important in the development of the road network and contributed to the expansion of rural NSW, particularly for the mining and agricultural sectors.

Before the construction of these bridges, river crossings were often treacherous and an impediment to efficient transport.

The bridge was designed in 1893 by Percy Allan, senior bridge designer at the NSW Public Works Department, and is important to the history of Morpeth.

For further information contact the project manager David Macgregor on (02) 4924 0643 or email: David_Macgregor@rta.nsw.gov.au.

Further details are available in the community update below.