h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

There aren't may left now I think just two, I think - Newport and Newcastle, but as a child I travelled on the Runcorn - Widnes tramsporter bridge over the Brigewater/Manchester Ship canals and the Mersey. Very impresive, particularly when it stood for a while next to the new road bridge and the old railway bridge. I also used to occasionally walk over the old railway bridge looking down through the slats to where the odd jumper used to embed themselves in the mud- or so I was told.

The sensation of being suspended on this platform with the rumbble of the bogies up on the span is one to put any child in thrall.

Not Newcastle - apologies. It seems there are about seven still operational world wide out of twenty built.

Middlesborough! I think its time for me medication - if I can remember where it is!!!

If only I had known about these bridges when I still had my Meccano sets!

http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.dalefield.com/nzfmm/magazine/Transporter_Bridge_1_Super_Model_21.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.dalefield.com/nzfmm/magazine/Transporter_Bridges.html&h=400&w=524&sz=49&hl=en&start=2&tbnid=BJFr7Arzej8csM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=132&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtransporter%2Bbridges%26gbv%3D2%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG

I have a feeling that they did feature one in their adverts, Mecano that is - yonks ago.

Whoops, I should have looked at your link first. Wikipedia has a good set of entries as well. 'Yonks' = long past!

Our neighbour regularly visits her uncle on Vancouver Island. Hope your Easter break is 'good'.

Regards GA

Born and *bred* on Vancouver Island. I only joined you mainlanders for work.
My break is good even though my walls are being plastered today. I can't really remember if I saw a Meccano set up like that, the last time I put one together was 1964!

That was three years after they pulled the transporter bridge down at Runcorn. I had my first camera - the plastic version of the Box Brownie and I have a photo I took of the three bridges together, probably 1960.

I thought the 'plastered' might have been the administration of alcohol!

Double entendre intended!

I'll have to track one down in my travels, still another thing to do before I shuffle off.

I would imagine that they are fairly rare now.