Having reached its third decade of use, the Millennium Bridge in London has been closed for repairs, maintenance and a thorough cleaning.
I use the Millennium Bridge several times a week and its one of my favourite bridges if only for the amazing views it affords. There is also lots of miniature artworks that some chap has been painstakingly creating amongst the treads on the floor. Lots of people seem to love it, I hate it but thats just me and everyone I’ve ever spoken to it about. Either way it is all apparently going to be removed as we get a sparkling and gleaming Millennium Bridge again.
You might think that being right in the centre of London under the the Shard, Gherkin and other symbols of modernity that there would be a complex hit-tech hazard warning system to ships on the Thames when work being carried on a bridge. Indeed there is, if you’re from 900 years ago.
The City Bridge Foundation is a charity which has been around for 900 years to ensure bridges are maintained without a financial burden to local citizens.
Whenever the clearance of a bridge has been reduced a bale of hay must be dangled from the bridge as a warning to shipping and at night a bright light but be lit.
People aren’t stupid, we realise that relying on a 900 year old law might be a little strange so thankfully there is some modern legislation that re-enforces the old laws.
The Port of London Authority Bylaws 2012 section 5 subsection 36.2 states ‘When the headroom of an arch or span of a bridge is reduced from its usual limits but that arch or span is not closed to navigation, the person in control of the bridge must suspend from the centre of that arch or span by day a bundle of straw large enough to be conspicuous and by night a white light.’
The photo above from the City Bridge Foundation shows the bale of hay about to be lowered over the bridge.
The Millennium Bridge is closed to pedestrians until Saturday 3rd November but if you’re sailing or mudlarking and bang your head or mast on the bridge then you’ve clearly only got yourself to blame!
If you want to learn about some other rather archaic traditions the City of London employs then why not click on https://stephenliddell.co.uk/2023/07/20/beating-the-bounds/ or perhaps https://stephenliddell.co.uk/2019/06/19/the-knollys-rose-ceremony-paying-off-a-620-year-old-rent/
Stephen Liddell 
Interesting stuff. I think it is great to respect tradition at least when it does not create needless risk, or in an updated manner. Do remember walking across it…I think to some theatre or gallery.
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You have a good memory, across the bridge is the Tate Modern, now the worlds largest Modern Art Gallery as it was expanded about 10 years ago. Next to it is the Globe Theatre. There is lots of interesting places to see in that area and its only recently getting noticed by the wider world.
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