This historic bridge is often visted by travellers taking a break, the adjacent reserve is one of the few places areas of public access to the Campaspe River.

This information has been copied & pasted from ...
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~aholgate/jm/girdertexts/gdrtext2.html#strathallan1.jpg
T-girder bridges, Part 2.
Extracts from Monash Bridges:Typology study; reinforced concrete bridges in Victoria 1897-1917.Concept and History: Lesley Alves 1998. Additional technical input: Alan Holgate and Geoff Taplin.
CAMPASPE: Strathallan Bridge No.1.

Location:


Campaspe River, Koyuga Strathallan Bawmawn Road, VR Map 31 D6.


Municipality:


Shire of Campaspe, formerly Shire of Rochester.


Description:


Girder, 5 × 9.1 metre spans.


Dates:


Tender December 1912, test August 1913.


Status (1998):


Still in use, strengthened.
Ed. Note: Feb 2010 Bridge is in a terrible state & not in use


Heritage Listing (1998):  


Nil.

 
Historic images of this bridge under construction can be found in the University of Melbourne Archives Image Collection UMAIC. Search under Record ID for UMA/I/6526, UMA/I/6527, UMA/I/6450. Any enquiries to UMA regarding these images should quote Location Numbers BWP/24014, BWP/24015, BWP/24016 respectively.
History.
Strathallan Siding was situated in a wheat growing district centred on the Campaspe River, where subdivision of the Restdown and Cornelia Creek Estates for closer settlement in 1906 and 1910 respectively, had brought an influx of population. By 1913 Restdown had 55 households and Cornelia Creek had 90. [1] The two estates were separated by the river, and there was no bridge on the 18 mile stretch between Echuca and Rochester. Restdown, on the west of the river, was cut off from the Strathallan Siding and the farmers had to cart their wheat to Echuca or Rochester. Both settlements boasted active progress associations, which, after campaigning for some time, [2] persuaded the Rochester Shire Council and the Closer Settlement Board of the need for a bridge. In August 1912 plans and specifications for a timber bridge were being prepared by the Public Works Department. [3] Besides the main bridge over the Campaspe, two smaller bridges were needed to span nearby billabongs. The cost of the work was to be shared by the Shire Council and the Board.
The Shire Engineer, W. T. Chaplin, on examining the plans, suggested that the estimated cost of £2100 could be reduced by changing the design and substituting cheaper wood. However, when tenders were called at the end of December alternative tenders for reinforced concrete bridges were also invited, probably at the instigation of the Shire Engineer. [4] Chaplin had been an early enthusiast for reinforced concrete, having assisted Monash & Anderson in winning the contract for the Coliban Bridge (qv) in 1901. Of the four tenders received, only the one submitted by the Reinforced Concrete & Monier Pipe Construction Co. was for reinforced concrete, to a plan drawn up by J. A. Laing. Whether the Company's tender of £1791 was the lowest is not clear, but the promise of durability was a major consideration in the success of the tender, which was selected by the Closer Settlement Board and the Public Works Department. [5] Work commenced in April 1913, under the supervision of both G. Kermode of the Public Works Department and Chaplin. The three bridges were completed by July. [6]
The test and opening, held on 12 August, was a festive occasion, with entertainment provided by the two progress associations. The Shire Council was proud of their progressiveness in adopting modern technology. However there were still some reservations regarding the safety of what they regarded as a new type of bridge. The traction engine was rigged up with a cable which drew the 15 ton test load across on a wagon. Deflections were measured to the satisfaction of the Shire Engineer before the engine was taken onto the bridge. [7] Monash was disgusted that such elaborate safety precautions should be reported in the press in a manner "calculated to inspire want of public confidence in our work and speciality", protesting that "the days when tests of reinforced concrete bridges were regarded as anything but a formality have long passed away". [8] The Argus reported that the engineers for the bridges were Kermode and Chaplin, with the Company acknowledged merely as contractors. [9]
The bridge united the Restdown and Cornelia Creek communities, initiating the formation of a small township around the Strathallan Siding, where a passenger platform was soon to be provided. Township blocks had already been sold and a post office was planned. Strathallan school opened the following year. [10]
Rochester Express, 18 April 1913.Ibid., 15 August 1913.Ibid., 27 August 1912.Ibid., 27 September, 24 December 1912.Ibid., 18 April 1913, correspondence February & March in Company records, Box 92 File 958.Company records.Rochester Express, 15 August 1913.Monash to Chaplin, 22 July 1913, Company records.Argus, 13 August 1913.  Bendigonian, 19 August 1913; Blake, L., Vision and Realisation, Melbourne, 1973, Vol 3, p.847.Significance.
Strathallan Bridge is a representative example of the larger reinforced concrete girder bridges designed and built by John Monash and the Reinforced Concrete & Monier Pipe Construction Co. in country areas just prior to World War 1. It demonstrates the principal characteristics of the functional design developed by the Company, and is the largest surviving bridge of its kind. Although it has been strengthened in a manner unsympathetic to the original design, it is still a fairly intact example The bridge has historical significance for its association with the development of closer settlement districts in the pre-war years and demonstrates the necessity for adequate transport links with the railway.
Lesley Alves 1998.
Description and Technical Analysis.
This is a fairly large bridge having 5 spans of 30 feet (9.14 m) with three girders and an overall width of 16 feet (4.88 m). Shear reinforcement covers the full length of the girders. The piers consist of three vertical columns joined by a curtain wall and founded on a strip footing. There is a nominal cross-head: a thickening of the top of the wall with a few longitudinal bars indicated. The abutments consist of the normal column and wall type. The bridge has been strengthened rather unsympathetically with steel cross beams at the western end in recent years. The timber handrailing is of the type shown in the original design and is typical of that used on country bridges.
This bridge displays the functional design developed by Monash for his larger country bridges from around 1911, and can be grouped with Shepparton Bridge (built 1911 now demolished), the ruined Cremona Bridge (q.v.), and the 3 span Darraweit Guim Bridge (q.v.). It is also of similar design to the much smaller Edgarley Bridge (q.v.) and the town bridge at Wattle Street Bendigo (q.v.). Strathallan Bridge is the largest surviving of this group.
The bridge is in need of maintenance [1997], with considerable spalling of the concrete surfaces and large horizontal cracks in the piers.