BUILT and designed to take up to 79,000 vehicles per day when it officially opened 60 years ago, a horse-drawn cart driven by a local teenager was actually the first vehicle to travel over the completed Thelwall Viaduct.
Retired hotelier Neville Davies was given the honour of taking the viaduct’s designer Sir James Drake and Minister for Transport, the Honourable Ernest Marples over the viaduct to the Woolston Junction, which is the only time someone has legally taken a horse over the Viaduct.
Neville’s father Oswald Davies was Joint Managing Director of Leonard Fairclough & Son, who built the first Thelwall Viaduct.
For several years, engineers and Government Officials had visited America to see their motorway networks and establish if this was possible for the UK. One issue that changed when the UK started to build motorways was that the Americans had what was called a ‘soft shoulder’ which was cheaper, but did not have a tarmac topping. This was not adopted by the UK where all motorways were built with a proper, serviceable surface. Work started on the Thelwall Viaduct in September 1959 and was completed in 1963.
With the 60th anniversary of the viaduct opening approaching Neville recalled when he was given the honour of driving the horse and cart.
“My dad came home from work one day to say that he had a meeting with Sir James Drake, from Lancashire County Council, who designed the Viaduct and the Right Honourable Ernest Marples MP, who was the Minister of Transport.
“They thought it would be a novel idea if, on the day of the opening they travelled over the Viaduct in a horse-drawn vehicle. I was tasked with the job of finding a horse and cart to fulfil this. I found out that Mr Smart, who was a builder from Appleton had several of these and so Dad and I went to see him. He kindly agreed to loan us one of his horses called Jim and a vehicle.
“As I had always ridden and knew how to handle and drive a horse-drawn vehicle, I was ‘volunteered’ to do the honours. I collected the horse and cart from Mr Smart the day before the opening and stabled it overnight. I was up at 4am on the day of the opening to feed and groom the horse.
“I left home at 5.30am to meet the dignitaries at Junction 20 of the M6 at the Lymm Interchange. This unearthly hour was decided due to the large number of visitors expected at 10 am for the Official Opening and subsequent walk over the Viaduct which was expected to be the last time this would ever happen.
“Sir James Drake and the Honourable Ernest Marples got in the cart with me and we travelled over to the Woolston Junction, which is the only time someone has legally taken a horse over the Viaduct.
“The passengers got off and on the return to junction 20, they played golf, which they had seen on frequent visits to America when they went to study their Motorway Systems and this was the usual activity when opening a new Motorway.
“I followed with ‘Jim’, my passengers got back in and we then travelled to the Lymm Hotel for breakfast.
“On arriving at the Lymm Hotel, I thought I was in line for breakfast also, but was thanked as everyone went in for their own breakfasts. This left me to take ‘Jim’ back to Appleton, put him in his field, store the cart and then walk home back to Lymm!
“It is something I was proud of, particularly as a seventeen-year-old,” concluded Neville.
In 1992 work started on a second viaduct costing £52.5m and built by Tarmac Construction.
Neville dropping off his guests at the Lymm Hotel
