But for how long?
The Ha'penny Bridge was built in 1816. It was renovated in 2001 by Harland and Wolff
Anyone who follows me on Facebook or Twitter will have heard me complain about these unsightly and decidedly unromantic lumps of metal that people have attached to the 200 year old Ha'penny Bridge. Last week Dublin City Council workers removed all the love locks from both the Ha'penny Bridge and the Millennium Bridge.
The bridge two months ago covered in unsightly padlocks.
The Ha'penny Bridge was built in 1816 and over the last 200 years has become one of the symbols of Dublin. The Bridge, designed by John Windsor, originally cost £3,894 to build. It was one of the first bridges to span the Liffey, a trip across cost a half penny, hence it's nickname. It's official name is The Liffey Bridge. In 2001 the bridge was closed for repair and didn't open again until 2003. At that time it was estimated that nearly 30,000 people used it everyday.
Following the removal of the locks this week you can see some of the damage they have done to the bridge.
Love locks are a phenomenon which were prevalent on continental Europe for many years before it started to become popular in Dublin in 2011. A couple in love will write their names on a padlock, attach it to a bridge and then throw the key in the river below. It's supposed to be a symbol of their undying love for one another. Personally I fail to see the romance behind it. There is no romance in defacing a 200 year old protected structure and there is certainly no romance when the aforementioned padlock is removed by a Dublin City Council worker with a bolt cutter!
People have also graffitied the bridge. In this picture you can see that one love lock has already been attached to the bridge.
This is the second time the love locks have been removed from the bridge. Dublin City Council have made a plea that no more locks are attached to the bridge as they are doing damage. I had hoped that this would have some affect but I'm skeptical. On Saturday when crossing the bridge I heard two tourists behind me exclaim "Oh my God, they've removed all the love locks from the "Love Lock Bridge", why would they do that?" The two girls in question were genuinely upset by the removal. What bothered me was that the Ha'penny Bridge is now being refereed to as the "Love Lock Bridge" How can Dublin City Council hope to stem the flow of love locks if the bridge has become a tourist attraction for all the wrong reasons? I despair!
Some of the damage that has been done to the bridge.
I would urge anyone who has read this far to spread the message that the Ha'penny Bridge is not the "Love Lock Bridge". Please tell friends and family about its history. Let's try and stop people defacing our beloved bridge.
