Posted on 08/10/2021 1:21:24 AM PDT by sodpoodle
LONDON (AFP, REUTERS) - London’s Tower Bridge reopened Tuesday (Aug 10) to traffic, after a “technical failure” left the 19th-century landmark’s arms pointing skyward for almost twelve hours.
The two sections of the bridge had been stuck since mid-afternoon on Monday, when they had been due to open for a tall wooden ship, the Sailing Vessel Tenacious, according to the bridge’s schedule.
The bridge, which allows boats to pass underneath by raising the road which crosses it, got stuck shortly before 2:45pm (1345 GMT), a spokeswoman for the City of London police force said.
It is the second time in a year that the bridge, one of the most recognisable features of London’s skyline, has become stuck. The bridge reopened to traffic at 01:45 BST (0045 GMT) on Tuesday, according to the BBC.
The bridge connects the Square Mile financial district to Southwark across the River Thames, and its closure caused long queues to build up on either side of the crossing.
Built between 1886 and 1894, the landmark was at the time considered “the largest and most sophisticated bascule bridge ever completed”, according to its website.
The bascules – the word for the bridge’s arms, derived from the French word for “seesaw” – move up and down via four large cogs on each side. The cogs were initially powered by steam before an electro-hydraulic system was installed in the 1970s.
The bridge normally lifts around 800 times a year.
In August 2020, it remained stuck for over an hour, causing traffic to become deadlocked in the surrounding areas.
Interesting. There was a video posted on Youtube just yesterday which showed how London Bridge operates and talked about what a big deal it is to city traffic when it’s opened.
In fact, I believe the bridge was actually stuck open while the video was posted although it was certainly shot weeks ago.
Stuck for 12 hours must have been a nightmare for all the operators who appeared in the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iitXhgif_lo
Ctl-alt-del.
There are a number of these bridges in my hometown. Much smaller, of course. Sometimes during the summer they’ll open them up for traffic and then are unable to close them due to the metal expanding in the summer heat. The fire department is called, and they hose the ends of the bridge down until they contract enough to close.
CC
Great video - very detailed.
There was a video posted on Youtube just yesterday which showed how London Bridge operates and talked about what a big deal it is to city traffic when it’s opened.
Tower Bridge isn't London Bridge.
London Bridge is in Lake Havasu, not London.
well, whichever is was, that’s the one!
Sep 17, 2019 · The popularity of the name “London Bridge” goes beyond the borders of the country. Kids all over the world along with their parents sing uncomplicated words of the song “London Bridge is falling down”. Moreover, some of these nursery rhymes on YouTube depict nothing else but the Tower Bridge calling it the London Bridge.
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