Swinford Toll Bridge
Coordinates: 51 ° 46 ′ 28 " N , 1 ° 21 ′ 33" W.
| Swinford Toll Bridge | ||
|---|---|---|
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| use | Road bridge | |
| Convicted | B4044 | |
| Crossing of | Thames | |
| place | Swinford | |
| Entertained by | Privately owned | |
| height | 4.5 m | |
| vehicles per day | 10,000 vehicles per day 3.93 million per year |
|
| completion | 1769 | |
| opening | 1769 | |
| toll | £ 0.05 (car) | |
| location | ||
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The Swinford Toll Bridge is a privately owned toll bridge over the River Thames in Oxfordshire , England . It crosses the river upstream of Eynsham Lock , between Eynsham on the northwest side of the river and Swinford on the southeast side. The B4044 from Oxford to Eynsham runs over the bridge.
history
The bridge was built in the Georgian style from limestone from the Cotswolds and opened in 1769. It replaces a previously existing ferry . The construction was funded by the Earl of Abingdon. The bridge has its own law. According to this law, the owner can collect a toll for using the bridge. In addition, it is forbidden to build other bridges 3 miles up and down the river from the bridge. By a decree of King George III . owners do not have to pay taxes on toll revenues.
Apart from Whitchurch Bridge, the bridge is the only bridge over the Thames upstream from London for which a toll has to be paid.
In 1835 the toll for pedestrians was abolished. Bicycles and motorbikes are also exempt from payment. All other vehicles have to pay to use them. For a car such. B. £ 0.05 as a toll. Even if the fee is small, efforts are being made to abolish it. Oxfordshire County Council estimates that approximately 10,000 vehicles cross the bridge each day. Collecting the toll creates disabilities and leads to air pollution.
The bridge was put up for sale in 2009 and sold for £ 1.08 million on December 3, 2009. Attempts to get Oxfordshire County Council to buy the bridge were unsuccessful.
See also
literature
- E. de Villiers: Swinford Toll Bridge 1769-1969 (= Occasional papers (Eynsham History Group). No. 1.) Eynsham History Group, Eynsham 1969, OCLC 18324089 .
Web links
- Feature and slideshow. on eynsham-pc.gov.uk
- Historical information. on eynsham.org
- Eynsham Lock. on riverthames.co.uk
Individual evidence
- ^ Fred S. Thacker: The Thames Highway. Volume II: Locks and Weirs. 1920 - 1968 reissued, David & Charles, Newton Abbot.
- ^ An Act for building a Bridge cross the River Thames, from Swinford, in the County of Berks, to Eynsham, in the County of Oxford. 7 George III, c. 63rd dated 1767 (Ref No HL / PO / PU / 1/1767 / 7G3n22).
- ^ A History of the County of Oxford. Volume 12: Wootton Hundred (South) including Woodstock (= Victoria County History of the Counties of England. ) Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford 1990, ISBN 0-19-722774-0 , pp. 98-110.
- ↑ Campaigners want 5p bridge toll scrapped. In: Witney Gazette. April 26, 2006, accessed January 18, 2016.
- ^ Scrap the Toll on Swinford Bridge in Oxfordshire.
- ↑ For sale: The 240-year-old bridge that will cost £ 1.65m- but earn you £ 113k a year in tax-free tolls. In: Daily Mail. June 8, 2009 Retrieved January 18, 2016.
- ↑ a b Huma Qureshi, Huma Tax-free Thames toll bridge for sale. In: The Guardian . November 17, 2009, accessed January 18, 2016.
- ↑ The 5p toll bridge is sold for £ 1.08m. In: The Independent . December 4, 2009, accessed January 18, 2016.
- ^ Allsop auction catalog , accessed January 18, 2016.
- ↑ Loic Vennin English bridge for sale amid toll rumpus. In: The Daily Telegraph . December 2, 2009, accessed January 18, 2016