The central span of Portumna’s bridge still swings open to let boats through: a 28-metre steel section that pivots on a mid-river island, opening a handful of times a day in summer and less often in winter. Completed in 1911, the bridge carries the N65 over the River Shannon between the town of Portumna in County Galway and Lehinch on the Tipperary side. It is free, open around the clock to walkers, cyclists and drivers, and if you time your visit for an opening you will see one of the more unusual pieces of working engineering on the midland waterways.
History and engineering
The present bridge replaced generations of ferries and timber crossings. It was designed by the London engineer C. E. Stanier, to the specifications of the Tipperary North Riding county surveyor J. O. Moynan, and finished in 1911. It is a five-span structure: the central pivoting section rests on Hayes’s Island, which splits the river into two channels, roughly 73 metres across on the Galway side and 79 on the Tipperary side. Each channel is carried on three pairs of mild-steel plate girders sitting on 3-metre cast-iron cylinders, whose domed, finialled tops give the bridge its outline.
Not all of it is Edwardian. Several outer piers are dressed limestone kept from an earlier bridge of 1834, and the swing-span abutments reuse nineteenth-century ashlar. In October 2008 the worn Victorian opening gear was replaced with a modern hydraulic unit, a new 28-metre swing span fabricated and installed by W&M Keating Ltd in a three-month contract, and that is what keeps it turning today. A small detached tollhouse of around 1845 still stands on Hayes’s Island, from the days when crossing the Shannon here cost money; the tolls were abolished by an Act of Parliament in 1858.
What to see and do
Crossing the bridge is best made part of a wider wander around Portumna and the Lough Derg shore. From the Galway side, the approach opens onto the river widening into the lake, with Portumna Castle and its walled gardens just downstream.
- Time it for an opening – leisure cruisers and the odd barge still use the navigation channel. When one approaches, the barriers drop, the lights flash and the central span swings slowly aside. The opening itself takes only a few minutes, so arrive early and find a safe vantage point; the rest of the time it is a static, if handsome, road bridge.
- Walking and cycling – the bridge links onto the Lough Derg Blueway, the waterside route running down to Portumna Harbour, and forms part of the Beara-Breifne Way walking route.
- Photography – the riveted steel, weathered limestone piers and the wide Shannon give plenty to work with, best in early or late light with the shoreline of Portumna Forest Park behind.
- Nearby heritage – the Irish Workhouse Centre is a five-minute walk on the Galway side, and Portumna Castle’s restored rooms and walled kitchen garden are close by, along with a 14th-century Dominican friary in the forest park.
Practical information
The bridge is a public road crossing, open to pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles all year, with no fee or booking.
- Accessibility – the deck is a smooth, gently graded road surface, manageable for wheelchairs and pushchairs.
- During an opening – automated barriers and lights close both approaches when the span turns; wait for it to lock back into line before crossing.
- Parking and facilities – parking is limited, with space near the Galway approach and at the Irish Workhouse Centre, which also has toilets and visitor information a few minutes’ walk away. The Ferry Inn, across on the Tipperary side, does meals with a view of the crossing.
- When to come – river traffic is heaviest between May and September, so that is when the span opens most; winter is quieter, with low light over the water.
Getting there
The bridge is on the N65 about a kilometre east of Portumna town centre; follow signs for Lehinch on the Tipperary side. Bus Éireann routes 71 and 71A between Limerick and Galway city stop in Portumna, a five-minute walk south of the bridge.
The swing takes only a few minutes and the timetable shifts through the year, so if watching it is the point of the trip, check the current opening times before you drive out. Otherwise you will most likely arrive to a bridge that is not going anywhere.