Westminster Bridge
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Westminster Bridge and surrounding landmarks at night |
Westminster Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge over the
River Thames between
Westminster and
Lambeth, in
London. The current bridge, opened in
1862, is the second on the site and replaced an earlier bridge that had opened in
1750 and had the tendency to sway alarmingly. Westminster Bridge is a seven-arch wrought iron bridge which has gothic detailing by
Charles Barry (the architect of the
Palace of Westminster). It is the only bridge over the Thames that spans seven arches and is the oldest bridge in the central area of the river Thames.
The bridge is predominantly green, the same colour as the leather seats in the
House of Commons which is on the side of the
Palace of Westminster nearest the bridge. This is in contrast to
Lambeth Bridge which is red, the same colour as the seats in the
House of Lords and is on the opposite side of the Houses of Parliament.
It links the Palace of Westminster on the west side of the river with
County Hall and the
London Eye on the east and was the finishing point during the early years of the
London Marathon.
The next bridge downstream is
Hungerford footbridge and upstream is
Lambeth Bridge.
In the
2002 science Fiction film 28 Days Later the protagonist awakes from a coma to find London deserted, and walks over the Westminster Bridge whilst looking for people.
* taken during the erection of the
London Eye, which can be seen resting horizontally above the Thames.
*
Upon Westminster Bridge by William Wordsworth
