Has London Bridge ever covered by snow?

Question

if yes, will the river be frozen and those ships cant pass thru the bridge then.

Answer 1

yes it has, but the snow wasnt the rite thickness etc to freeze the river so no probs :)

hope this helped :) :) :)

Answer 2

About 8 years a go myslef and two friends had a drunk snowball fight on London Bridge that resulted in one of my friends accidentally throwing his mobile phone in the Thames ;-)

Answer 3

London Bridge doesn't open anyway, so only the water freezing itself could threaten shipping, rather than the bridge itself freezing shut, as it's shut anyway.

Answer 4

London does get covered by snow occasionally and so do its bridges.

But the Thames won't freeze over any more -- at least while our climate stays as it is -- so shipping can come and go year-round these days.

The main reason it used to freeze hundreds of years ago is partly because of the design of the old London Bridge (it had large bases, called "piers", and narrow arches, which meant that water was slowed around the bridge and ice could build up around the piers.

The other reason why the river used to freeze but doesn't any more is because its banks are no longer shallow and natural, but hemmed in by walls ("embankments") which -- again -- means that the river flows faster.

Edit:

Here's a nice page, including an old drawing of the most famous Frost Fair, held in the winter of 1813-14: http://www.jasa.net.au/london/thames.htm

Love from a Londoner born and bred.

=D