[4][5] The beams used were prestressed using the Freyssinet system, in which concrete is precast with stressed high-tensile-strength metal tendons, which consist of multiple steel wires, running down the length of them.

The LMS developed this system in the 1930s, and prestressed beams were first used for emergency repairs during World War II, but the Adam Viaduct first to use them for a full-scale project.

[1] The benefits of the system were found to be that it was quicker to install, more economical and longer-lasting, and with the bridge being less lively than traditional designs.

[5] It was erected in 1946 on the foundations of an earlier Victorian bridge, created as part of the Liverpool & Bury Railway in 1847, which was made from timber with masonry abutments.

[5] Southgate, a bypass of the A49 from Pottery Road and Saddle Junction, passes underneath the bridge and next to the River Douglas.