This Romantic Gesture Is Apparently Damaging the Brooklyn Bridge and Costing the City Millions

It's the modern version of carving your sweetheart's name on a tree — and it's apparently damaging bridges.

The practice is called "love-locking," and the idea is pretty cute and simple: take a padlock, etch or write a romantic note on it, and clamp it onto a bridge or other solid architectural feature. Throw away the key and voila!, you've got a seemingly permanent marker of your affection.

Some favorite sites for love-lockers are the Ponts des Arts in Paris (above) and the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City (below).

The problem: thousands of metal padlocks weigh a lot, and they're creating an eyesore and the risk of corrosion, according to the folks behind the Brooklyn Bridge's Facebook page.

According to local WABC-TV, the city has removed 3,000 padlocks from the Brooklyn Bridge over the past year.

Featured image source: Instagram user diannerzzz

(H/T: Mashable)

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