The Brooklyn Bridge is unlocked!
New signs warning tourists not to attach so-called “love locks” to the borough’s most beloved bridge appear to be working, with regular visitors noticing a big drop in the number of the security devices and other junk showing up on the fabled span since the campaign began two months ago.
“Since they put the signs up, it’s better and cleaner,” said Albert Zylyftari, who has been selling his artwork on the span for five years. “Every day, people used to ask me if I sold locks, but not anymore.”
After years of clipping off the weighty tokens of love only to see more appear the next day, the Department of Transportation launched an offensive in October, placing 16 signs along the span threatening anyone who secures a lock on the bridge with a $100 fine — including a particularly pun-y design that reads “No locks, yes lox” and has a picture of a smoked-salmon-stuffed bagel on it.
The Police Department — which had previously turned a blind eye to the vandalism — also joined in, instructing cops on the bridge to intervene whenever they see a visitor about to latch on.
The transportation department wouldn’t say how many of the mementos it has removed since the crackdown began, but the stretch was almost entirely lock-free during two visits over the past month, with only a few rusted souvenirs stuck on hard-to-reach lampposts.
Those remain a problem, however — in September, one lock-laden pole became so heavy that it broke off and fell onto the roadway below.
Police haven’t issued any of the threatened fines, according to a Police Department spokeswoman — though they never really intended to — but tourists say they’re self-policing thanks to the signs.
“I visited Europe in the first week of November so I saw a lot of locks everywhere and there’s no signs like this,” said Chaney Reduerto, who recently visited the bridge while on vacation from the Philippines. “I wouldn’t put one up here though because the police will fine me.”
The Department of Transportation will release more data on its lock-lopping efforts on the bridge in the coming months, a spokeswoman said.
