Tower Bridge is often mistaken for London Bridge, but the two crossings have different histories and designs. Tower Bridge stands beside the Tower of London and combines a central bascule span that lifts for river traffic with suspension sections extending toward the banks. It is both working infrastructure and a paid visitor attraction. Understanding that distinction makes a visit more rewarding: the bridge still serves road and river users, while its towers, high-level walkways and former engine rooms tell the story of how Victorian London sought to connect a growing city without blocking its busy port.
By the late nineteenth century, traffic in the East End was growing, yet a conventional fixed bridge farther downstream risked obstructing ships serving the Pool of London docks. Petitions called for a new crossing east of the Tower of London. In 1876 the Corporation of London asked a committee to examine a bridge or tunnel. More than 50 designs were submitted before architect and City Surveyor Sir Horace Jones, working with civil engineer Sir John Wolfe Barry, proposed the moving bascule design. Its central roadway could rise for vessels, while the high-level walkways would keep pedestrians moving above the river when the bascules were raised.
