Lovelocks in Paris

Where are they locked?
This being the city of love … everywhere, but the focal points are the Pont des Arts and Pont de l’Archevêché – though most bridges across the Seine are now afflicted. It is estimated more than 700,000 love locks are clamped to bridges and fences across the French capital.

What are people saying about them?

Tourists seem to be the most approving of the idea but those living in the city are growing less patient. This spring, two expat Americans set up a No Love Locks campaign, which petitioned the city council to take action. One of their points is that they could affect the structural integrity of the bridges. As if to prove their point, in June one of the parapets on the Pont Des Arts buckled under the weight of them.

Official line
Aware of the popularity of the activity among tourists, the city council has avoided taking a hardline approach to tackling the problem. Earlier in the summer, Guardian Travel spoke to the city’s culture secretary Bruno Julliard, who said he hoped to find “artistic, unifying and ecological alternatives” to the love locks. “The idea is to call for projects directed by Parisian artists, as well artists from around the world, asking them to suggest a place or a piece of art that would welcome all these love locks,” he said. In August a #lovewithoutlocks campaign was started on social media, calling on visiting couples to take selfies instead.