Glenfinnan Viaduct

Name: Glenfinnan Viaduct
Address: GB

글렌피넌 고가교

This railway viaduct sweeps across the glen of Glenfinnan in the Scottish Highlands on 21 graceful arches; it opened in 1901 and is 380 m long and 30 m high. It was built of concrete, then a new material, which earned its builder Robert McAlpine the nickname "Concrete Bob". It appears in four Harry Potter films — in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry and Ron chase the Hogwarts Express across it in a flying car — and every summer a real steam train, the Jacobite, still puffs over it.

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At a glance

Country: United Kingdom
Height: 30 m
Type: Infrastructure
Kind: Film locations

Quick answers

Where is Glenfinnan Viaduct?

Glenfinnan Viaduct is in United Kingdom.

How tall is Glenfinnan Viaduct?

Glenfinnan Viaduct is about 30 m tall.

The Glenfinnan Viaduct is a curved railway bridge in the Scottish Highlands, in the Lochaber district. It was built from 1897 to 1901 and carries the West Highland Line, with views over Loch Shiel and the Glenfinnan Monument.

It has 21 semicircular arches, is 380 metres long and crosses the River Finnan at a height of 30 metres. It is the longest concrete railway bridge in Scotland and also became famous worldwide in the Harry Potter films. Repair work on the structure began in 2024 after more than six years of planning. It stands at the head of Loch Shiel.

How was it built?

The railway to Mallaig was built by the contractor Robert McAlpine & Sons, whose boss, nicknamed "Concrete Bob", was a pioneer of using concrete. The bridge is mass concrete, poured without any steel reinforcement, and is very strong when squeezed but weak when pulled.

It was complete enough to carry building materials by October 1898 and cost 18,904 pounds. The line opened on 1 April 1901.

Horse myth and film fame

A long-told legend said a horse fell into one of the bridge's piers during construction. In 1987 a professor looked inside the Glenfinnan piers with a camera and found nothing. In 2001, scans found the remains of a horse and cart in a pier of a different bridge, the Loch nan Uamh Viaduct.

In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry and Ron fly a car next to the Hogwarts Express as it crosses the viaduct. Repair work began in 2024.

Fun facts

In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry and Ron fly a car alongside the Hogwarts Express as it crosses this 21-arch viaduct.
It is the longest concrete railway bridge in Scotland.
The builder was nicknamed "Concrete Bob".
The horse legend was tested with a camera and scans.