Explore 5 love lock bridges around the world

Love locks have gained in popularity and have become a frequent sight on bridges in cities all over the globe. As it turns out today that love locks are rather worse to many authorities than ever because the rising number of them has caused certain serious problems to architecture.

A love lock, sometimes known as a love padlock, is a padlock which couples lock to a public object, most often a bridge, to symbolize their love. After the padlock is locked, the key is thrown away, most often to a river or a lake, to symbolize their unbreakable love. Love locks have become more and more popular over the last 20 years and are often treated by the authorities as litter or even vandalism due to the damage they can cause and the cost of removing them. The pedestrian Pont Des Arts Love Lock Bridge – Paris, France at night, which hit the headlines in 2014 after one of the parapets of the bridge buckled under the weight of the estimated 700,000 padlock.

Love locks started appearing on Hohenzollern bridge over the river Rhine near the Cologne Cathedra in Germany, in the year 2008. This bridge is 410 m long with full of colorful love locks on its fences and it seems to have had no more gaps so far. The number of locks locked upon locks locked upon locks is quite overwhelming. But for some, they look fantastic together.

Love padlocks in front of Neuschwanstein castle in Germany. The locks of love are hanging all over the Marienbrücke bridge, in front of the Neuschwanstein castle, and that shows us how much people love to fall in love at this destination due to such incredible beauty like in the fairy tales.

This iconic tradition, however, has been on debate as vandalism. In the year 2011, the authorities in Bamberg, Germany reported to create a campaign of removing these locks and negatively claimed them as the cause of the serious rust and destruction the beauty on the Kettenbrucke bridge. This report met the strong disapproval from citizens and a number of meetings in the town, the locks have been retained up to now.

The love locks, some painted, some rusting, usually carry the names or initials of a couple and, perhaps, an important date in the Corktown Footbridge – Ottawa, Canada. A University of Ottawa professor is concerned about the potential for the locks to detach themselves and fall on passersby below.

The love padlocks tradition is going strong in Spain and this is a love padlock for a locked love on a bridge in Cuenca, Spain.The love padlocks tradition is going strong in Spain and this is a love padlock for a locked love on a bridge in Cuenca, Spain.

Love locks are originally a place for lovers so some people believe having the lock cut open could mean something bad will happen to their relationship while others think love locks are an eyesore and proclaim messages like “free your love, save our bridges.”

The Bridge of Love (Most Ljubavi in Vrnjačka Banja) in Serbia is where the locked padlock tradition is supposed to have started 100 years ago or so. The story goes: “A local schoolmistress named Nada, who was from Vrnjačka Banja, fell in love with a Serbian officer named Relja. After they committed to each other Relja went to war in Greece where he fell in love with a local woman from Corfu. As a consequence, Relja and Nada broke off their engagement. Nada never recovered from that devastating blow, and after some time, she died due to heartbreak from her unfortunate love. As young women from Vrnjačka Banja wanted to protect their own loves, they started writing down their names, with the names of their loved ones, on padlocks and affixing them to the railings of the bridge where Nada and Relja used to meet.”

Many authorities have been trying to get rid of these love locks for years. They have had organized groups that pick the locks off the bridges. Some frown upon them for being an eyesore and damaging to public property. The photographer said, “There have been many people to symbolize what may last more or less than the object used as a symbol. The sea salt claims everything is left near, even steel. In this railing, the locks have a thick oxide layer that obscures the details. I did not know that there were specific padlocks to symbolize Love.” A love lock by the sea in Spain.

Various locks in the Salzburg bridge in Austria – a great site to take a nice view of the town.

Then some folks love the romantic gesture while others regard love locks as vandalizing architecture and infrastructure. No matter how many thousands are removed, thousands upon thousands of lovers continue this phenomenon of love locks all over the world.