About the River Tyne

By George

Contents• History of the River Tyne

• The seven bridges

• The newest bridge

• Nature at the Tyne today

History of the River Tyne• The River Tyne is 200 miles long• The Romans built the first bridge over the Tyne in AD 120• This bridge was named Pons Aelius after the Emperor Hadrian• The Tyne was known for shipbuilding and by 1800 it was said to be

the third largest producer of ships in Britain• The River Tyne is two rivers, the South Tyne and the North Tyne meet

together to make the big River Tyne

A Swan Hunter ship launched on the Tyne

Building the Tyne Bridge

A tram crossing the Tyne Bridge

The Seven BridgesThere are seven bridges over the River Tyne, they are;

The Millennium Bridge The Tyne Bridge The Swing Bridge and The High Level

Bridge

Queen Elizabeth Metro Bridge

King Edward and Redheugh Bridge

The Newest Bridge • The newest bridge is the millennium bridge• It was built on 19,000 tonnes of concrete• The bridge is nicknamed ‘the blinking eye’• It rises 50 metres above the river level and

the foundations go down 30 metres to anchor it to the riverbed• The millennium bridge can survive a crash

with a 4,000 tonne ship going at four knots (one knot is one mile on the sea)

Nature at the Tyne Today• The River Tyne is now much cleaner than it used to be• It has a healthy ecosystem for animals and birds to live in• Creatures who live on the banks of the Tyne include:

• Kingfishers• Kittiwakes• Ospreys• Otters• Water voles

• The River Tyne is the best salmon river in England and Wales