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This famous renovated Parisian bridge is falling apart (and it's dangerous)

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The Editor

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It’s undoubtedly one of the most romantic places in the capital. But also one of the most stylish, especially since Aya Nakamura's standout performance at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics. Every day, hundreds of tourists flock to the Pont des Arts, unaware that it’s in a worrying state of disrepair.

In 2023, after a renovation estimated at over 1.8 million euros, mainly due to the thousands of locks that threatened the railings, the Pont des Arts revealed its new look, including its brand new wooden floor. Unfortunately, it seems that just 3 years later, this beautiful floor is far from fulfilling all its promises and poses a threat to pedestrians crossing it.


A Public Hazard

If you have strolled by the Pont des Arts lately—a charming bridge connecting the Institut de France to the courtyard of the Louvre, by the way—you've probably noticed wooden planks rudely screwed into the ground between two floorboards. It's a precarious setup with just one goal: to limit damage as much as possible.

to know about the increasingly systematic detachment of parts of the floor. Indeed, in a video recently published by the mayor of the 6th, Jean-Pierre Lecoq, you can see him easily lifting a plank, leaving behind him a gaping hole over the Seine, measuring no less than 2 meters long. The central city hall, to address this situation, hasn’t done anything so far except install the aforementioned plates, which have already caused quite a few falls of pedestrians who trip because of the elevation.


A New Project on the Horizon

This is certainly a puzzling situation, especially since the bridge was completely redone less than 3 years ago, and the renovations were warranted for 30 years. However, while the wood is still in very good condition, the fittings, on the other hand, apparently did not survive the heat and vibrations caused by pedestrians and especially the large number of cyclists. Our brand-new mayor, Emmanuel Grégoire, expressed his dismay about this situation, even though, as a reminder, cycling is normally prohibited on this footbridge. To address this issue, a new project is set to begin on May 11th, lasting around eight weeks. We hope that this...

This new project will allow this symbol of the capital to regain all its splendor, so it can continue to properly welcome loving couples by the dozens.