Millennium Bridge

I shot this couple crossing the Millennium Bridge over the Thames, with St Paul's in the background. In the last few years three pedestrian-only bridges have been built over the Thames in central London, totally changing the character of the South Bank (as I mentioned the other day). This bridge in particular is a fantastic addition to the city. It's not just because it has linked two major tourist attractions in a way that has totally revitalised two moribund neighbourhoods, creating massive amounts of foot traffic where before there were just cars (or nothing). It's also a really interesting structure. Amazingly, it's only one of several really interesting structures that have appeared in this part of London in the last few years: how is that even possible?? A risky, architecturally ambitious public building programme in this day and age? Obviously this sort of stuff ought to be happening, but whereas in the past great public buildings were financed either by the spoils of war or by private donations, nowadays private individuals build only for themselves, and the public purse has other priorities, sadly.

Enter the wonderful tax on stupidity! Actually, that's a bit harsh. Maybe we should call it a tax on blind optimism. Either way, I have mixed feelings about it. Lotteries pander to people's greed, they target the poorest and weakest in society, instead of the wealthiest. They provide governments with additional revenue streams while letting them pretend to cut taxes, and they give politicians an excuse to divert funding from core services. On the other hand, without the lottery, our public spaces would be poorer. Which cash-strapped government is going to choose to build non-critical infrastructure like this instead of a new hospital? I guess, if carefully regulated, with lots of safeguards on how revenues can be spent, on balance it's a good thing. Certainly, when crossing the Millennium Bridge, I felt as if I'd won the lottery, without having spent any money!

Details: Nikon D70, 18-200mm @ 50mm, f/13, 1/50s, ISO 200, ND grad simulated in Photoshop. London, 28 December 2006. Placemark.