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The Great Britain Guide

Historic bridges · London

Millennium Bridge

Also known as: Millennium Bridge, Londain

ModernFree admission♿ Wheelchair accessible

Millennium Bridge is a historic bridge in the United Kingdom.

Millennium Bridge, historic bridges in London

Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence

Plan your visit

Typical visit
15 min–30 min
Nearest railway station
Mansion House · 0.3 km
  • Free entry
  • Dog-friendly
  • Wheelchair accessible

About

Millennium Bridge is a named historic bridge in the United Kingdom. Records date its origin to 2000. Coordinates: 51.5098°, -0.0985°.

Photo gallery

From the Wikipedia article

The Millennium Bridge, officially known as the London Millennium Footbridge, is a steel suspension bridge for pedestrians crossing the River Thames in London, England, linking Bankside with the City of London. It is owned and maintained by Bridge House Estates, a charitable trust overseen by the City of London Corporation. Construction began in 1998, and it initially opened on 10 June 2000. Londoners nicknamed it the "Wobbly Bridge" and even the "Wibbly Wobbly" after pedestrians experienced an alarming swaying motion on its opening day. The bridge was closed later that day and, after two days of limited access, it was closed again for almost two years so that modifications and repairs could be made to keep the bridge stable and stop the swaying motion. It reopened in February 2002, after real-life safety tests were conducted by 700 staff from engineering consultancy Arup. The bridge is located between Southwark Bridge and Blackfriars Railway Bridge. Its southern end is near the Globe Theatre, the Bankside Gallery, and Tate Modern, while its northern end is next to the City of London School below St Paul's Cathedral. The bridge's alignment is such that a clear view (i.e. a "terminating vista") of St Paul's south façade is presented from across the river, framed by the bridge supports.

Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.

Background

Architecture

An architectural design competition was organised in 1996 by Southwark council and RIBA Competitions. The winning entry was an innovative "blade of light" effort from Arup Group, Foster + Partners and Anthony Caro. Due to height restrictions, and to improve the view, the bridge's suspension design had the supporting cables below the deck level, giving a very shallow profile. The bridge has two river piers and consists of three main sections of 81 m, 144 m, 108 m (north to south) with a total structure length of 325 m; the aluminium deck is 4 m wide. The eight suspension cables are tensioned to pull with a force of 2,000 tons against the piers set into each bank—enough to support a working…

Visiting

The bridge opened on 10 June 2000, one month late. Unexpected lateral vibration due to resonant structural response caused the bridge to be closed on 12 June for modifications. Attempts had been made to limit the number of people crossing the bridge, which led to long queues but were ineffective to dampen the vibrations. Closure of the bridge only two days after opening attracted public criticism as another high-profile British Millennium project that suffered an embarrassing setback, akin to how many saw the Millennium Dome. The vibration was attributed to a then under-researched phenomenon whereby pedestrians crossing a bridge that has a lateral sway have an unconscious tendency to match…

Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Coordinates
51.5098, -0.0985
Parish
City of London, unparished area
Postcode
EC4V 3QH
Parliamentary constituency
Cities of London and Westminster
Established
2000
Nearest railway station
Mansion House0.3 km
Opening
{{start date and age|df=yes|2000|6|10}}

Sources

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Nearby

Other bridges from this era

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Frequently asked questions

Where is Millennium Bridge?
Millennium Bridge is in London, United Kingdom (postcode EC4V 3QH), in the parish of City of London, unparished area.
When was Millennium Bridge built?
Built or established in 2000.
Is Millennium Bridge free to visit?
Yes, Millennium Bridge is free to enter.
How do I get to Millennium Bridge?
The nearest railway station is Mansion House, about 0.3 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode EC4V 3QH.