* * * At midnight last Sunday Waterloo Bridge was
closed to traffic. The serious subsidence of one of the piers had become worse rather rapidly—certainly more rapidly than had been expected—and the L.C.C. announced that both as a precaution and in order to hasten the repairs the bridge must be closed. The resulting congestion in the other streets which lead across the river is a proof to every eye how much greater care and foresight than have ever been practised in the past are necessary when dealing with the traffic problem. A single weak arch throws us into confusion ! We have no doubt ourselves that more bridges will be needed. Above all, one is needed between Blackfriars and Waterloo. Motor traffic, multiplied beyond all expectation, and extremely heavy vehicles have introduced problems that could not have been foreseen even ten years ago. The authorities dealing with this problem are too numerous. and too jealous. A supreme authority with all the necessary powers must be chosen or invented without delay.
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