St Kilda Street Bridge
The St Kilda Street Bridge crosses the Elwood Canal on St. Kilda Street, Elwood, about 10 km south of the Melbourne CBD.
The bridge was designed and constructed in 1905 by civil engineer John Monash (later General Sir John Monash) of the Reinforced Concrete & Monier Pipe Company.
The bridge marks a turning point where the acceptability of reinforced concrete for civil engineering works and building had been accepted. The bridge demonstrates the technical innovation achieved by Monash in the early years of the twentieth century and the earliest developments of reinforced concrete technology in Australia.
As the oldest extant reinforced concrete beam bridge in Victoria and possibly Australia, the bridge is an important addition to the list of sites recognised by Engineering Heritage Australia and furthers key objectives set by Engineering Heritage Victoria.
Engineering Heritage Recognition Program
| Marker Type | Engineering Heritage Marker (EHM) |
| Award Date | April 2015 |
| Heritage Significance | Prior to the construction of the St Kilda Street Bridge, the use of reinforced concrete in bridges was limited to Monier arch bridges which were designed such that the arch carried only compressive stresses and the reinforcement carried only unpredicted local tensile stresses. The St Kilda Street Bridge is Victoria’s first successful example of a reinforced concrete T-girder bridge where the reinforcement carries large tensile stresses rather than only localised stresses. Many other reinforced concrete T-girder bridges were constructed in the early twentieth century, with these bridges proving to be cost effective, strong, durable and resistant to fire and flood damage. |
| Nomination Document | Available here. |
| Ceremony Booklet Ceremony Report |
Not Available. |
| Plaque/Interpretation Panel | Available here. |
