It is estimated the padlocks collectively weigh three tonnes/Image: BBC
By June 2025, an estimated three tonnes of locks had accumulated on the pedestrian bridge, adding so much weight that it could no longer be lifted. In 2016, then Bristol mayor Marvin Rees said it was unlikely the locks would be removed, describing them as part of the creativity and iconic sights of the Floating Harbour. In June 2025, officials said the three-tonne collection would be removed before the Bristol Harbour Festival, which was scheduled for July 18-20.
Patsy Mellor, Bristol’s director of management of place, told the city’s harbour committee that the locks were estimated to weigh three tonnes. She said officials were looking for a solution that could allow the locks to be moved to a nearby structure instead. For years, couples visiting Bristol attached padlocks to Pero’s Bridge to symbolise their relationships, often throwing the keys into the harbour below. The tradition eventually created an unexpected engineering problem. The city planned to remove the locks before that summer’s Harbour Festival. Rather than simply throwing away the sentimental collection, the council was considering placing the locks on another nearby structure. The episode shows how a tradition intended to represent permanence can eventually clash with the infrastructure carrying it. Thousands of small gestures of affection had accumulated into a load measured in tonnes. The very symbols intended to keep love fixed in place had become heavy enough to prevent Pero’s Bridge from moving.
The removal had to take place before the Harbour Festival in July. The debate had previously gone in the opposite direction.
