"...I cannot get to my love, if I would dee,
The water of Tyne runs between him and me,
And here I must stand with the tear in my e'e,
Both sighing and sickly, my sweetheart to see..."

The Water Of Tyne. (Traditional Song)

The River Tyne in north east England has many bridges, the most famous of them being those linking the city of Newcastle upon Tyne with the town of Gateshead, but there are a great many more. Some are within the County of Tyne and Wear but most lie in Northumberland, with more in neighbouring Cumbria.

A mile or so west of Hexham the Tyne divides. The South Tyne goes west to Haltwhistle, then turns south towards Cumbria, reaching its source deep in the Pennine moors.

The North Tyne meanwhile runs north west, up towards the borderlands, the haunt of the reivers of times gone by, to the Kielder Reservoir and beyond to its disputed source near the Scottish border.

You can explore ALL the bridges on the Tyne, past and present, with photographs; read about the ferries, Tyne Tunnels and the structure and design of bridges and how the Tyne influenced their development.

Please note: There is another River Tyne in Scotland's border country but this site is not concerned with that other river.At the entrance to the River Tyne stand two great piers. Soon after the River Tyne Commissioners assumed responsibility for the river in 1850, work commenced (in 1855), although the piers suffered much damage during construction, delaying opening of the South Pier until 1895, while the North Pier was not finally completed until 1909. The Piers made the harbour immeasurably safer, major hazards like the Black Middens and the Herd Sands rarely now presenting problems for vessels entering or leaving the river. Although the once massive coal exports are a thing of the past, the Port of Tyne is still busy with other cargoes, and the International Ferry Terminal brings tourists. The first bridge crosses some 8 miles up river, and moving upstream from the river mouth evidence remains of the shipyards, coal staiths and various engineering works that once lined its banks. New development is all around, however, and nowhere more than at Newcastle and Gateshead Quays where the first bridges are encountered.

NEW: BRIDGES ON THE TEES

It is hoped to do a companion website on the Bridges Of the Rivers Coquet and Wansbeck in Northumberland in the coming months, and eventually cover all the rivers from Tweed to Tees which flow into the North Sea.

BAMBOO BRIDGE

This bridge is a temporary structure increaasing the number of main city-centre Tyne bridges to 8. It lies between the Gateshead Millenium Bridge and the Tyne Bridge and was built in July 2008 by and Australian company Bambuco and is supported by twin bamboo towers each 25 m high with the 100m bridge strung between. It is not possible for the public to cross and the bridge has been built as part of the Summer Tyne festival and will stay up for only 3 days from Friday July 18th. 20 tonnes of bamboo were used in its construction.

 Map of River Tyne