Romance has died a little in a corner of North Wales where lovestruck couples like to declare their unbreakable bonds. For years, a pretty suspension bridge in the Conwy countryside was the place to go for local couples wanting to seal their lifelong commitment to each other.
This week, residents were left mystified when a series of love locks were removed from Gower’s Bridge over the river Conwy near Llanrwst. Dozens had been cut off without warning, leaving some people bereft.
Some have demanded theirs be returned. One woman, from Llandudno, said: “It’s such a shame. My partner proposed to me last year and we had a lovely one put on (the bridge). We even visited it on Christmas Day.”
Love locks are padlocks typically engraved with a couple’s name. Often the key is tossed away as a gesture of eternal love. The tradition can be traced to the 2006 best-selling Italian novel Ho Voglia di Te (“I Want You”) in which two sweethearts attach a love lock to Rome’s Ponte Milvio bridge.
Some bridges around the world have been left heaving with padlocks fixed to fencing and railings. Most famous of them all, for a while, was Pont des Arts over the River Seine in Paris. After structural weakening was identified on the bridge, the padlocks were removed and the practice banned. It was estimated, conservatively, that the padlocks added 28 tonnes to the bridge’s load.
Gower’s Bridge, a footbridge built in 1947 for just £1,500, was never going to rival Pont des Arts for love tokenism. By 2018, just 40 padlocks had been affixed to Conwy’s very own “love bridge”. One showed it wasn’t a recent affectation – a love lock from Sharon and Alex was inscribed: “Locked in Love for ten years. Boom!”
More have been added since, but Gower’s Bridge was hardly wilting under the weight of padlocks. So why were they removed? Conwy Council has held up its hand: the locks’ weight, however, was not the main issue, it said. Sign up now for the latest news on the North Wales Live Whatsapp community
Love Locks on the bridge attached by Sharon and Alex – their first one was put there almost 20 years ago
(Image: John Lawson-Reay)
Council photo showing how some of the love locks are rusting away
(Image: Conwy Council)
A spokesperson said: “We removed some padlocks recently from Gower’s Bridge because they were causing the mesh (that they were fixed to) to rust. We realise that attaching padlocks is seen as a romantic gesture but it can cause harm.
“Unfortunately, there have been examples at tourist destinations around the world where such padlocks have compromised the safety and durability of much-loved bridges and structures.”
Gower’s Bridge certainly has a romantic setting, surrounded by lush meadows in the tree-lined Conwy Valley. The steel crossing replaced an earlier wooden bridge built in 1880 that was wide enough for horse-drawn carriages.
It was constructed as a toll bridge to link Llanrwst with Trefriw across the River Conwy. Thanks to the healing waters of a nearby spa, Trefriw was a 19th century tourism hotspot. While some visitors travelled up river on paddle steamers, others took the train to Llanrwst and they needed an alternative to the tortuous toll road via Pont Fawr, the town’s 17th century bridge.
The old wooden toll bridge for horse-drawn carriages that was replaced by a suspension bridge for pedestrians in 1947. The former toll house was also demolished
(Image: John Lawson-Reay)
The Rev John Gower, rector of Trefriw, provided the solution, building his own quicker toll route across the valley floor in a straight line to Llanrwst. This became Gower Road and his name was also used for the wooden bridge, which survived until the 1940s before being replaced by today’s suspension bridge.
It’s been called a “hidden gem” for walkers. But for locals deprived of their love locks, some of its sparkle has now been lost. On social media, a Llanrwst woman wrote: “Does anyone know who did this? We would like our lock back as it meant a lot to us. It’s disappointing that this wasn’t considered before these locks were removed without warning.”
Conwy Council has not indicated what became of the removed locks. Other local authorities have scrapped them or had them melted down. That was Derbyshire Council’s intention when it planned to cut 40,000 locks from the Weir footbridge in Bakewell last year.
Following a public outcry, couples were given the chance to saw off their locks in September 2024. The rest were transferred to a “forever home” at nearby Grade II-listed Thornbridge Hall. They’re currently being to re-threaded onto a new railing with 288 wires for a grand unveiling – on Valentines Day. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
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