75 years old? It's a baby

The Sydney Harbour Bridge was closed today for a public walk-over. The event celebrated the 75th anniversary of the bridge's opening. Australia's festivities made me wonder which was London's oldest surviving bridge.

The oldest bridge across the Thames River in London is Westminster Bridge. This wrought iron bridge was opened in 1862, replacing an even older structure that opened in 1750. The bridge sits along side the House of Commons in the Palace of Westminster. The first bridge on this site was the second Thames crossing built in London. It's remarkable that there was only one bridge crossing the river until the mid-1700s.

Previously the oldest bridge had been London Bridge, built in 1831. A bridge has been situated in this area for almost 2000 years. The current bridge was opened in 1973. Its predecessor was famously sold to an American millionaire, disassembled and shipped to Arizona. The resurrected bridge is now the centrepiece of a planned community called Lake Havasu City.

Congratulations Sydney Harbour Bridge. You'll be old once you reach 145 years of age.