Aberdeen station abandoned bridges?

[DesiroUK]

Good morning folks. I recently visited Aberdeen for the first time a few days ago, and while waiting at the station, I noticed what looked like an abandoned footbridge. See the picture I took which shows the bridge just ending in mid-air and boarded up. I was wondering if anyone knows the history of this bridge, google is not very forthcoming, why and when was it abandoned?
Thanks, Lee.

 

[Prime586]

It doesn't look like it was ever a passenger bridge, from this 1949 aerial photo in the Canmore collection it looks like it had lift winding houses on it, so it was possibly for transferring mail or parcels, or for taking catering supplies to trains (the central of the 3 bridges has always been the main passenger footbridge). This 1971 interior photo from the collection shows it ending above and going down into some kind of office (possibly a parcels office?). By the time this 1985 photo from the collection was taken, the concourse has been remodelled, the office has gone and the bridge is in it's present state (though partially hidden by an advertising hoarding).

It looks like when Platforms 8 & 9 were taken out of use (the two westernmost through platforms adjacent to College St) when the station was rationalised and remodelled in 1973-74 the northernmost goods lift/bridge was also taken out of use but the southernmost one (which also has a winding house on top of it, but only reaches Platforms 7 & 8) was probably retained to service trains on Platform 7. From this 1999 photo taken below the northernmost bridge on Platform 7, it seems whatever the winding house was above on Platform 7 was also removed.

The station's through platforms (6-9) originally ran north under Guild Street towards Union Street, and the north-facing bay platforms (10-13) were on the north side of Guild Street, next to the station hotel. There was another footbridge to the north of Guild Street that connected all the platforms to the original suburban booking office on the west end of the Guild Street bridge, which is now a hair salon. The northern end of the through platforms, bay platforms and footbridge were all demolished in 1973 when the station was rationalised, with Atholl House and the Trinity Centre later being built on the site. RailScot has an article about the demolition.

 

[snowball]

I have never been to Aberdeen station so this may be irrelevant rubbish, but is this one of the two luggage footbridges mentioned in post #2 of the Dunblane-Aberdeen electrification thread?

 

[Morayshire]

I have never been to Aberdeen station so this may be irrelevant rubbish, but is this one of the two luggage footbridges mentioned in post #2 of the Dunblane-Aberdeen electrification thread?

It is indeed one of the two luggage footbridges

 

[Prime586]

Ah, I was almost right then (I'd forgotten about the existence of luggage vans and station porters). Presumably the office it ended at on the main concourse in the 1971 photo was the (former) luggage and parcels office then (which would make sense, as it is surrounded by luggage lockers)?

It seems a shame that all three bridges are going to be demolished for electrification work, despite being part of a Category A listed structure. Only a couple of years ago, the Grade 2 listed luggage bridge at Worcester Shrub Hill was replaced with an exact replica during restoration work at the station due to the original ironwork being too far gone. It could potentially be used as an accessible footbridge in the future if lifts are reinstalled in the towers.