The Millennium Bridge allows pedestrians to walk over the river Thames from the Tate Modern on Bankside to St Paul’s Cathedral. London, England, UK.
The new “Millennium Bridge”, as the name suggests, was built to mark the turn of the new Millennium. Unfortunately, almost as soon as it was opened, on the 10th of June 2000, it became apparent that there was a serious flaw in the design. The movement of thousands of people streaming across the newly opened bridge caused it to sway slightly, then as people adjusted their steps to maintain balance the swaying effect became amplified, and the lateral movement of the bridge very quickly became alarming. It is a well known phenomenon and it is the reason why it is standard military practice for marching soldiers to break step whenever they cross a bridge. The bridge, which had been hailed by designers as “a pure expression of engineering structure” and “an absolute statement of our capabilities at the beginning of the 21st century”, soon became popularly known as the “Wobbly Bridge”. Much to everyone’s embarrassment the bridge had to be closed, and it remained closed for nearly two years while the necessary modifications were made to solve the problem. Today we can look back on these traumas and see them as nothing more than the usual snags and teething troubles to be expected with any new, innovative building project, and the bridge has taken its place as an elegant addition to London’s rich stock of iconic landmarks.
Size: 2848px × 4287px
Location: The River Thames, Southwark, London, England, United Kingdom, UK, Great Britain, GB.
Photo credit: © Andrew Wood / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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