Tower Bridge can definitely be considered one of London’s top attractions. Along with Big Ben, the Buckingham Palace and the London Eye; millions of tourists visit the decorative landmark every year.
But while it’s no doubt an extravagant river crossing, the site between the City of London and South Bank has an important role to play for road and river traffic alike.
About 800 times per year the bridge is lifted to allow larger boats to continue travelling along the Thames. Boat captains must request this in advance to ensure the operations runs smoothly, although no charge is required.
To allow for this to happen a large network of machinery and pumps are situated below the river. The old steam engines were replaced in the 1970s, but much of the bridge’s Victorian-era construction completed in 1894 has been left intact.
As always, bridge drivers take control of the operation to halt road traffic and allow boats to pass through. Ex-Royal Navy engineer John, 35, who works in this role said the job comprises of four 12-hour shifts a week, mostly from 7am until 7pm.
His day starts with checking the pre-arranged lift times and inspecting the machinery rooms below. The day is then planned around the lifts – which are prioritised above anything else.
John told MyLondon: “As a driver I’ll get here [the control room] about half an hour before the bridge lift time. The first thing I’ll do is contact the vessel on our ship-to-shore radio. It’s very formal as everyone on the Thames is listening, so we’ll just confirm that they’re ready for the lift.
“I’ll then start the hydraulics and 90 seconds later will announce the bridge is about to be shut. The traffic lights will go red and once cars and pedestrians have stopped crossing we can shut the gates. Once the bridge is unlocked a light will go green and I can pull this lever towards me and raise the bridge. The height I lift it to depends on the tide height and the height of the vessel.
“Then it’s just the reverse procedure. We’ll lock the bridge, open the road gates, traffic lights go green, open up the pedestrian gates and stop the pumps.”
Take a look at our gallery of pictures below.