Ouse Valley Viaduct, Sussex: The Most Elegant Viaduct In Britain

The Ouse Valley Viaduct in Sussex has been described as 'probably the most elegant viaduct in Britain.'

The viaduct was originally built in 1838 to carry the London-Brighton line over the River Ouse.

It has been estimated that around 11 million bricks were used in construction.

Many of the materials used were shipped across the English Channel from the Netherlands to Newhaven and Lewes, in addition to some locally produced bricks.

The magnificent structure is Grade II listed, meaning it’s of special interest, warranting every effort to preserve it.

There were competing routes for a railway from London to Brighton, including one which was to be in a tunnel all the way.

The London & Brighton Railway chose that of Sir John Rennie and engaged John Rastrick to be engineer.

He was a man of considerable experience in railway engineering, having with his partner built Trevithick's 'Catch Me Who Can', only the third steam locomotive to be built in the world.

He had also built a cast iron bridge over the river Wye at Chepstow in 1816, had been engineer to the Stratford & Morton Tramway, had built three locomotives for export to America, and was one of the three judges at the 1829 Rainhill trials.

The Ouse viaduct is 450m long, 29m high and comprised thirty seven brick arches with pierced piers.

Its elegance was enhanced by the railway company's architect, David Mocatta, who built a stone cornice with balustrade along the top and erected four classical pavilions, two at each end.

The eleven million bricks and other materials were carried from Holland to the site by barge on the river Ouse.

The total cost of the viaduct's construction reportedly came to £38,500 (equivalent to £3.72 million in today’s money).

On 12 July 1841, the viaduct was officially opened to train services, although the structure was not fully completed until the following year.

Despite the structure's fine design, materials, and architectural features, the viaduct has had an expensive and problematic history.

The first major restoration work occurred during the 1890s, during which sections of the original brickwork were entirely replaced in the belief that this would increase the structure's strength.

However, the viaduct suffered considerable decay during the majority of the twentieth century.

Between March 1996 and September 1999, the viaduct was subject to an extensive restoration by national rail infrastructure owner Railtrack; this work was part-funded by English Heritage and West Sussex County Council.

Once a treat known only to locals, it is now an Instagram hotspot - its arched vaulting generates an impressive visual effect.

Getting there:

Get the train from London Victoria to Balcombe Station, where it is around a 3.5km (2 mile) walk to the viaduct.

If you are driving, park at the Ardingly Reservoir Car Park - it is around a 1km walk to the viaduct.

Take the train from London to Brighton and you will cross over the Ouse Valley Viaduct a little over halfway through your journey, when a screen of trees dissolves for an elevated view over this pocket of the Weald.

Ouse Valley Viaduct has lots of five star reviews on TripAdvisor, one recent visitor said: “We spent a couple of hours here and I was very impressed with the whole viaduct.

”There are a few parking spaces along the field by the viaduct and then you can reach it through a gate and across the fields.

”You can go right up to it and even climb on to some parts. We went into the surrounding fields to get some good views too.”

Another person added: “Beautiful historic viaduct and a peaceful place to visit within a 90-minute drive from London.

”The place is within 30 mins drive from Gatwick Airport. It is free to visit and can spend 2-3 hours. There is no parking facility, so need to park at the gates on the road, have to be careful if travelling with kids.

”After the viaduct, we travelled to Brighton Beach which was a 30-40 minute drive for a nice evening walk.”

If you’d like to visit, the address is: Borde Hill Ln, Haywards Heath RH17 6QR.

If you enjoyed this blog post, please follow Exploring GB on Facebook for daily travel content and inspiration.

Don’t forget to check out our latest blog posts below!

Thank you for visiting Exploring GB.