Nine Arch Bridge and the stone curve above Ella
Published on 09/01/2026 at 14:44 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Nine Arch Bridge near Ella in Sri Lanka’s central highlands is a stone railway viaduct whose gently curving row of arches carries the hill-country line across a jungle ravine between two hillside stations. Completed in 1921 during the British colonial period, the bridge combines robust masonry engineering with the steep, green slopes of Uva Province, turning an everyday piece of railway infrastructure into a landmark of Sri Lanka’s interior.
A stone viaduct between Ella and Demodara
Nine Arch Bridge stands on the Badulla railway line between Ella and Demodara, a section of track that winds through folded hills, tea estates and patches of forest in Sri Lanka’s central highlands. The viaduct lies near the village of Gotuwala, reached from Ella by minor roads and footpaths that drop from the ridge towards the line.The bridge is situated between Ella and Demodara stations and sits a short distance off the road that climbs out of town towards Passara.It forms part of the Badulla railway line in Uva Province
The structure is widely known as the Demodara Nine Arch Bridge and, in English, sometimes as the Bridge in the Sky, a name that echoes its position high above the ravine floor and the views along the valley from track level.Nine Arch Bridge is a recognised colonial-era railway viaduct and is cited as one of the more substantial pieces of engineering on Sri Lanka’s upcountry line.It belongs to the Colombo–Badulla hill-country railway corridor
Arches, materials and dimensions
The viaduct takes the form of a gentle curve of nine masonry arches, each rising from solid stone piers to carry a single railway track across the ravine. Descriptions of the bridge consistently give a total length close to 91 m (around 300 ft) and a height of about 24 m (roughly 80 ft) from rail level to the valley floor, making it a substantial piece of infrastructure within the hill-country landscape.Figures near 91 m in length and 24 m in height are widely reported and are repeated in engineering and travel descriptions of the site.Measurements around 300 ft by 80 ft appear in recorded data
The bridge is built from stone, brick and cement blocks rather than steel, a feature that has drawn attention to its construction since the early twentieth century. Accounts of the project describe locally sourced stone and sand combined with British-manufactured cement and facing blocks moulded on site, producing a solid masonry viaduct without metal reinforcement.Contemporary descriptions refer to a concrete and masonry railway viaduct and note the absence of steel members in the finished structure.Later summaries describe a 91 m stone viaduct built in 1921 without steel
Colonial-era engineering in Sri Lanka’s hill country
Nine Arch Bridge belongs to the period when British colonial administrators expanded Sri Lanka’s interior railway network to connect tea-growing uplands with coastal cities. Construction of the viaduct was begun in the second decade of the twentieth century and the bridge was brought into service in 1921, giving the upcountry line a permanent crossing of the ravine between Ella and Demodara.Records of the Demodara viaduct date its opening to 1921 and describe it as part of a wider programme of railway construction in Ceylon’s highlands.
Engineering accounts attribute the bridge’s construction to a local Ceylonese builder, P. K. Appuhami, working with British engineers from the railway department. Design responsibility for the hill-country line and the viaduct is linked in those records to D. J. Wimalasurendra and Harold Cuthbert Marwood, engineers associated with the colonial railway administration.Documentation attributes construction to P. K. Appuhami in consultation with British engineersProject records name D. J. Wimalasurendra and Harold Cuthbert Marwood in connection with the viaduct
Visiting Nine Arch Bridge: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- Nine Arch Bridge lies in Sri Lanka’s Uva Province between Ella and Demodara on the Badulla railway line, reached from Ella by local roads and footpaths leading towards the tracks.
- The approach from Ella involves a walk along uneven paths and slopes, and in some routes a section on the railway line itself, including a tunnel and ballast underfoot.
- The bridge stands at an elevation of more than 1,000 m (3,281 ft) in Sri Lanka’s central highlands, so weather can change quickly and cloud can move across the surrounding hills.
- The official languages of Sri Lanka are Sinhala and Tamil, and the currency is the Sri Lankan rupee.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
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Frequently asked questions about Nine Arch Bridge
Where is Nine Arch Bridge located?
Nine Arch Bridge is in Sri Lanka’s Uva Province on the Badulla railway line between Ella and Demodara, near the village of Gotuwala in the central highlands.
What can visitors expect when they reach the bridge?
Visitors find a curving stone viaduct with nine arches carrying a single track above a forested ravine, approached by paths and, on some routes, a section of walk along the railway.
What makes Nine Arch Bridge distinctive among Sri Lanka’s railway structures?
The bridge is distinctive for its masonry construction without steel, its nine evenly spaced arches, its gently curving form and its position on the hill-country line between Ella and Demodara.
