Leeds nostalgia: Old Knostrop swing bridge pictured in 1977
March 10, 1977: The old Knostrop four-lock bridge at Thwaite Gate, Hunslet.
It was built on October 11, 1899 by Great Northern Railway.
It was known as ‘the swing bridge which never swung’.
It spanned the River Aire above Thwaite Gate, near Thwaite Mills and was on the branch line which ran from Beeston junction to Hunslet goods Yard - the old track can still be seen on online maps. At the time of building, there were plans to make Leeds Liverpool Canal navigable for sea-faring vessels, similar to Manchester Shipping Canal but this never happened.
The bridge was dismantled but one of the columns still stands.
The area is now part of the city’s flood defence project, following the Boxing Day floods two years ago.