Troubridge Roll-on Roll-off Bridge, SA

MV Troubridge replaced the SS Karatta in providing freight and passenger services on the Adelaide – Kingscote – Port Lincoln route in 1961.

A significant improvement of the Troubridge over the Karatta was that the Troubridge was a roll-on / roll-off ferry that could carry 50 to 60 cars, trucks, and trailers over two levels. The Troubridge had a rear access ramp.

To facilitate the loading of the Troubridge the South Australian Harbour’s Board (SAHB) - now Department of Infrastructure and Transport - designed and constructed a steel swing bridge for each of the three ports.

The swing bridgess pivoted at the shore end and was balanced with concrete counterweights. The outer end of end of the bridges were supported from a steel portal frame that allowed the outer end of the bridges to be moved with a range of 9 metres. This allowed for the bridges to match the levels of the two vehicle decks on vessel as it changed by the vessel draft and tide level.

The bridges were fabricated at the SAHB’s Glanville workshops.

The Troubridge was replaced by the MV Island Seaway in 1987. The Island Seaway used the bridges until it was replaced by a ferry service from Cape Jervis to Penneshaw in 1995. The bridges have not been used since.

The Kingscote and Port Lincoln bridges have since been removed. The Port Adelaide bridge remains.