Accommodation / Occupation

Accommodation / Occupation

‘Accommodation / Occupation’ -

The Stockton & Darlington Railway took the idea of railways to a whole new level when it was constructed. All the bits of infrastructure and architecture that we take for granted now, had to be designed for the very first time back then.

Among the architectural firsts along the route was the creating of ‘accommodation and occupation’ bridges - thoroughfares which allowed farm access across the line where the railway cut across their land on an embankment. A few of the original accommodation bridges still exist, yet due to their nature of being on farmland are overlooked or not even known about. Very little of the architecture of the 1825 line remains anywhere so these are particularly rare.

‘Accommodation / Occupation’ sees these humble unseen bridges transformed into large-scale temporary works of art. Bespoke inflatable forms explore the form and scale of the architecture and make it stand out in the landscape for a short amount of time.

As the locations are mostly on difficult to access land, and often on private property, it wasn’t possible for the public to see the pieces in situ. Instead they were documented in large format photography and will be displayed in public on billboards. The billboards chosen are beside the current railway line from Bishop Aukland to Middlesbrough to make a visual connection with passing trains. Being alongside busy roads the large photos will be seen by thousands of people daily. Taking a hidden part of the story and making it very visual for a few weeks.

The first two bridges used are Brusselton Accommodation Bridge between West Auckland and Shildon in County Durham, and Throstle Nest Occupation Bridge on the outskirts of Darlington.

Brusselton Accommodation Bridge sits beneath the Brusselton Incline - one of the stretches of the original 1825 line where wagons of coal were pulled up the steep hill by a winding engine at the top. Although this bridge wasn’t built until 1832, it is still a great example of very early accommodation bridges. An act of parliament in 1820 gave the railway company the power to compulsory purchase farm land to build the railway over. However, the act also stipulated that where the railway crosses farm land on an embankment, bridges needed to be built to allow access across the railway. This was the birth of the ‘Accommodation’ bridge. Brussselton Accommodation Bridge is now a grade ii listed structure and sits within the Brusselton Incline Scheduled Monument.

Throstle Nest Occupation Bridge now sits beneath the B6279 Tornado Way and is better known as the Arnold Road Tunnel. But originally it was an occupation bridge under the Stockton and Darlington mainline. It was built in 1824 - just one year before the railway opened - by Francis Peacock who also built the nearby Skerne Bridge. Both bridges were designed by George Stephenson - the ‘father’ of the railways. Originally it was just 3m long passing under a single track, but by 1832 it was widened to accommodate two tracks over it as the railway became popular. By the end of the 19th century additional tracks, a coal yard and several sidings were added making the humble bridge more of a tunnel that you see today. However, look at the stonework inside and you can still clearly see the original bridge arches in the middle.

‘Accommodation / Occupation’ features large inflatable forms that fill the space beneath the bridges and spill out, playing with the ideas of occupying the space and the accommodating architecture. As both bridges are listed historical structures, the inflatable forms just nestled in the arch without any fixings or damage to the important architecture.

The resulting images are displayed on billboards along the railway line. The first is behind the Railway Institute on North Road in Darlington, just metres away from the railway museum at Hopetown and visible from the train. The second sits next to the line between THornaby and Middlesbrough where trains run right behind the billboard. The six meter wide images will be on display from the 8th September to the 5th October to coincide with the S&DR bicentenary on the 27th September 2025.