At one time the iconic bridge of the infamous top locks in Runcorn, it is the only canal bridge in Runcorn to be grade II listed and was built in 1828 with a sidewalk and parapet added in 1886. The centre span has "Waterloo Bridge" in interlaced rings at carriageway level, and the posts have projecting caps surmounted by a swan neck motif and the balustrades loops linked by flowers. As part of an upgrade to Runcorn Bridge, the construction in 1960 of the Silver Jubilee Bridge over the Mersey and its various approach roads severed the canal at this point, cutting it short in the middle of the town. Originally, Waterloo Bridge marked the head of a flight of ten locks, which from 1773 carried the Bridgewater Canal to the River Mersey, then later, to the Manchester Ship Canal, following its completion in 1894. The right hand arch of the bridge once straddled the line of the new flight of locks constructed in 1828, the centre arch covered a dry dock and the left-hand arch crossed the line of the old flight of five pairs of two rise locks. For almost exactly 60 years Waterloo bridge had therefore been quite literally a shadow of its former self, but at the time of this photo, and the main reason for this entire photo project to begin, the concrete walls were finally demolished in March 2020. With the building of the new Mersey Gateway Bridge further east, Runcorn Bridge was finally able to close in 2017 for an overhaul in order to be redesigned for local traffic to and from Widnes, with the Mersey Gateway now taking responsibility for the vast majority of passing traffic between Liverpool & Chester. The removal of the old approach road meant that the bridge was uncovered, allowing light to pass through again and the vision for the reinstatement of the locks to become something more than just a dream. ‘Unlock Runcorn’ now hopes to finally be able to secure funding and begin work to reopen the canal here, with the water flowing down to Dukesfield and into the ship canal and the Mersey, with a state of the art boat lift situated just behind the bridge as a modern solution to what was once a flight of ten locks. GPS Coordinates: 53.340650, -2.738683