For anyone who has dreamed of adding a lock (or who has been lucky enough to add one) to the famed Paris Pont des Arts bridge, the city has declared it will no longer welcome the locks and has begun the process of permanently removing old locks.
The renowned bridge over the river Seine in Paris is located near the Musee de Orsay and the Louvre, earning its names Pont des Arts. (“Pont” means “bridge” in French.) A recent trend that began in 2008, lovers and parents have added locks with loving inscriptions, tossing thekeys into the river to forever seal their love. In recent years, however, Parisians and city officials have declared the panels not only an eyesore but a safety concern for when the panels fall due to the weight of the locks, destroying the bridge, as well as other bridges in the area, where love locks have begun to appear. (The Pont de l’Archeveche near Notre Dame has seen a rise in locks, with local vendors selling locks to visitors just steps from the bridge.) Last month, the city made the official declaration: the locks would be removed permanently and are no longer welcome.
This week, the city has begun the process of removing the panels, the result being 45 tons and nearly a million locks removed.
–Lissa Poirot
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