Craigmore Viaduct Craigmore Viaduct The Craigmore Viaduct () is a railway bridge near Bessbrook, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, known locally as the 18 Arches. (OS Grid ref: Jo628). Near Newry railway station. The bridge was designed by John Benjamin Macneill, an eminent Irish civil engineer, with construction beginning in 1849 for the Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway. The bridge was formally opened in 1852. It spans the valley of Camlough River. The viaduct consists of 18 arches of 60 ft span, the highest being 126 ft, making Craigmore the tallest viaduct in Ireland. It is around a quarter of a mile long
Millau Viaduct and structural engineer Dr Michel Virlogeux. He worked with the Dutch engineering firm ARCADIS, responsible for the structural engineering of the bridge. The 'high solution' required the construction of a viaduct. From 1991 to 1993, the structures division of Sétra, directed by Michel Virlogeux, carried out preliminary studies, and examined the feasibility of a single structure spanning the valley. Taking into account technical, architectural, and financial issues, the Administration of Roads opened the question for competition among structural engineers and architects to widen the search for realistic designs. By July 1993, seventeen structural engineers and thirty-eight architects applied as candidates