Full Report for Listed Buildings
The list description is not intended to be a complete inventory of what is listed: it is principally intended to aid identification. By law, the definition of a listed building includes the entire building (i) and any structure or object that is fixed to the said building and ancillary to it and (ii) any other structure or object that forms part of the land and has done so since before 1 July 1948, and was within the curtilage of the building, and ancillary to it, on the date on which said building was first included in the list, or on 1 January 1969, whichever was later.
Summary Description
Reference Number
22862
Building Number
Grade
II
Status
Designated
Date of Designation
25/02/2000
Date of Amendment
25/02/2000
Name of Property
Aberdulais Viaduct (partly in Blaenrhonddan community)
Address
Location
Unitary Authority
Neath Port Talbot
Community
Blaenhonddan
Town
Locality
Aberdulais
Easting
277273
Northing
199239
Street Side
W
Location
Spanning the River Neath S of the Aberdulais Aqueduct and N of Dulais Fach Road.
Description
Broad Class
Transport
Period
History
The Vale of Neath Railway was incorporated in 1846 and opened in 1851. Engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the line was built to a broad gauge. The Aberdulais viaduct, like many others designed by Brunel, was originally constructed of timber with stone abutments, with the intention of rebuilding in stone at a later date. In the event the bridge was not rebuilt in stone until the late C19, after it was absorbed into the GWR in 1861.
Exterior
A 5-bay viaduct, of which 4 bays span the River Neath, and a 5th bay on the W side spans Station Road. The abutments, belonging to the original bridge opened in 1851, are of coursed, hammer-dressed sandstone, while the later arches and parapet are of snecked, rock-faced stone with blue-brick arches. The piers have V-shaped cutwaters with pyramidal caps. Beneath the parapet is a thick projecting blue-brick band. The flat coping is of large bricks. The abutments are battered (with a concave profile beneath the deck) and are splayed outwards to retain an embankment. The deck carries a single track.
Interior
Reason for designation
Listed for its industrial archaeological interest as a railway bridge designed in 2 phases, the original wooden structure having been replaced by the present stone bridge but incorporating the original abutments. Group value with Aberdulais Aqueduct.
Cadw : Full Report for Listed Buildings [ Records 1 of 1 ]
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