Bridgewater Bridge 3.52

The Bridgewater Bridge and Causeway spans the Derwent River in Tasmania, Australia between Bridgewater and Granton. It consists of a vertical lift bridge and a specially-built causeway connecting the bridge to the east bank of the river. It accommodates a two-lane highway, a single track railway and, on the bridge section, a footpath. As the bridge is the major connector of the Midland Highway on the eastern shore and the Brooker Highway on the western, the lifting of the bridge can cause considerable traffic delays, depending on the time of day and season.HistoryThe Bridgewater Bridge was one of the first bridges constructed in Tasmania following British settlement in 1803, and gave its name to the nearby suburb of Bridgewater, Hobart. Lieutenant-Governor George Arthur commissioned the construction of the bridge and causeway as part of the Launceston-Hobart Trunk Road, linking both Tasmanian towns and providing easier access to farmlands in the interior of Tasmania.