Chelfham Viaduct, west side, photographed on 6th March 2010. photograph by Gregory Beecroft

The viaduct has eight semi-circular arches with a span of 42 feet and is up to 70 feet high. It was built of cream-coloured Marland bricks, but with stone bases to the piers. There are blue brick imposts and a string course. Pilasters and corbelled out refuges are built onto three of the piers. One is on the east side of the centre pier and the other two are on the west side, two arches in from each end. The railway curves onto the viaduct at the south end, where the arches are built straight, but at an angle to each other.

Chelfham Viaduct, east side. photograph by Gregory Beecroft

Construction of the viaduct was subcontracted to a local company, Woollaway & Sons. It was complete and works trains could run over it in February 1897, but construction delays elsewhere resulted in the line not opening to the public until May 1898. The railway's life was all too short. The need for track renewals, and limited traffic outside the summer holiday period, led the Southern Railway to close the line in September 1935. The trackbed was sold, but the viaduct remained in railway ownership. The parapets were taken down during the 1950s.

Chelfham Viaduct in 1996, without parapets. photograph by Gregory Beecroft

In July 2010 the viaduct will gain the doleful record of having been closed for twice as long as it was open to traffic. However, it stands ready to carry trains again, should the re-opening of the line by the new Lynton & Barnstaple Railway extend that far. The viaduct was extensively renovated in 2000. The parapets were reinstated and the deck was waterproofed, with the work being done to a specification to suit railway operation. The waterproof membrane is tougher than would normally be the case for a non-operational structure.

Chelfham Viaduct undergoing renovation in 2000. photograph by Gregory Beecroft

The renovated viaduct deck and reinstated parapets photographed on 16th September 2004. The waterproof membrane is under the ballast. Little remains to be done but to lay the track. photograph by Chris Osment

The project was noteworthy in several respects. It is believed to have been the first major work undertaken to the viaduct since it was built and the only occasion on which it has been scaffolded. The main contractor, Stansell Ltd, had years earlier taken over Woollaways, who had built the viaduct. Renovation of the viaduct was the last major civil engineering work undertaken for the British Railways Board. The structure is now in the ownership of BRB (Residuary) Limited.