News

Hopes new visitor centre at Bennerley Viaduct will open in October

By Lauren Monaghan, Junior Local Democracy Reporter

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The new visitor centre at a historical viaduct connecting Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire could open in October 2025.

Works are currently underway to build the new centre at Bennerley Viaduct, the ‘landmark’ bridge over the River Erewash that sits near Awsworth, Broxtowe.

The iconic, Grade II-listed structure – built in 1877 to 1878 in the age of steam, iron and coal – is known as The Iron Giant of the Erewash Valley.

It was built by the Great Northern Railway to carry the Friargate Line from Nottingham to Derby and is the longest Victorian wrought iron viaduct in England.

It is one of two that are still standing today, standing 20 metres above the valley of the River Erewash and is a quarter of a mile long.

Train usage of the bridge ceased in the 1960s, and it was derelict; however, the Friends of Bennerley Viaduct took over its care.

In 2022, the landmark was reopened to the public for walking, cycling and exploring.

The new visitor centre will be situated on the Eastern side of the viaduct and will include a café, outdoor seating and bicycle parking.

A new accessible ramp is also being built.

An educational space will also feature, offering the history of the site for visitors, tours and school trips. This will also act as an exhibition space for creative works.

Nick Tooley, Chair of the Trustees for Friends of Bennerley Viaduct, told Notts TV it was “impossible” to give an exact date of the opening of the visitor centre, but is “hoping” it will be open to visitors in October 2025.

He said: “We’ve been speaking to people who remember going over the viaduct when it was open in the 60s, on holiday, on the trains.

“We’ve got a lot of archived material that we will be hoping to bring out and put in the exhibitions in the visitor centre- it actually means an awful lot to a lot of people.

“Bear with us, this project has lasted longer than it should have, there have been some technical issues we are hopefully getting around now. We think we’re on the final run and we do desperately hope we will have it open, with the help of the council, this October.”

He added that the project is also developing a nature reserve underneath the bridge.

Speaking to Notts TV, Broxtowe Borough Council Leader, Milan Radulovic (Brox Alliance), said he hopes the project will attract many tourists to the area.

He said: “To look at and examine our industrial heritage and give young people an opportunity and focus to pay their respects to the people who made the country what it is today.

“The wealth we enjoy and the standard of living were built on the backs of working-class people, and this area has a proud heritage of mining, steelwork, and industrial work. This will be a lasting tribute and memorial to the sacrifices that they made for the freedoms and benefits we enjoy today.

“That will encourage them not just to look at our industrial past but to look at our environment, to enjoy the surroundings and have access to open countryside and clean and fresh air.”

The visitor centre is projected to cost £1.1 million and is funded by the Kimberley Means Business Fund.