Editing Clifton Suspension Bridge (section)

==History==

===Plans===
It is unknown when the first bridge was constructed across the Avon in Bristol, but the first stone bridge, [[Bristol Bridge]], was built in the 13th century. It had houses with shopfronts built on it to pay for its maintenance. A 17th-century illustration shows that these bridge houses were five storeys high, including the attic rooms, and that they overhung the river much as [[Tudor architecture|Tudor]] houses would overhang the street.{{sfn|Lynch|1999|p=10}} In the 1760s a bill to replace the bridge was carried through parliament by the Bristol MP [[Jarrit Smyth|Sir Jarrit Smyth]].{{sfn|Bantock|2004|p=29}} By the early 18th century, increase in traffic and the encroachment of shops on the roadway made the bridge fatally dangerous for many pedestrians. A new bridge, designed by [[James Bridges (architect)|James Bridges]] and finished by [[Thomas Paty]] was built in 1769 and 1776. Resentment at the tolls exacted to cross the new bridge occasioned the [[Bristol riots|Bristol Bridge Riot]] of 1793.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=12}} Other crossings were considered, but were restricted by [[British Admiralty|Admiralty]] rules that stipulated that any bridge had to be at least {{convert|100|ft}} above the water to allow the passage of tall-masted warships to [[Bristol Harbour]]. To achieve this, any bridge constructed between Bristol Bridge and Avon Gorge, from [[Hotwells]] to [[Ashton Gate, Bristol|Ashton Gate]], would require massive embankments and viaducts.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=10}} The alternative was to build across the narrowest point of the Avon Gorge, well above the height required for shipping.
[[File:William Bridges design for the Clifton bridge.jpg|thumb|left|William Bridges' design]]

In 1753 Bristolian merchant William Vick had left a bequest in his will of [[Pound sterling|£]]1,000 (equivalent to £{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|1000|1753|r=-4}}}} in {{Inflation-year|UK}}),{{Inflation-fn|UK|df=y}} invested with instructions that when the [[interest]] had accumulated to £10,000 ({{tooltip|2=equivalent in {{Inflation-year|UK}}|£{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|10000|1753|r=-4}}}}}}), it should be used for the purpose of building a stone bridge between [[Clifton Down]] (which was in [[Gloucestershire]], outside the City of Bristol, until the 1830s) and [[Leigh Woods, Bristol|Leigh Woods]] in Somerset.{{sfn|Vaughan|2003|pp=37–39}} Although there was little development in the area before the late 18th century, as Bristol became more prosperous, [[Clifton, Bristol|Clifton]] became fashionable and more wealthy merchants moved to the area.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=3}} In 1793 William Bridges published plans for a stone arch with abutments containing factories, which would pay for the upkeep of the bridge. The [[French Revolutionary Wars]] broke out soon after the design was published, affecting trade and commerce, so the plans were shelved.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=10}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Clifton Suspension Bridge, Gloucestershire |url=http://www.theheritagetrail.co.uk/industrial/clifton_suspension_bridge.htm |publisher=Heritage Trail |access-date=11 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120418230731/http://www.theheritagetrail.co.uk/industrial/clifton_suspension_bridge.htm |archive-date=18 April 2012 }}</ref> In 1811 [[Sarah Guppy]] patented a design for a suspension bridge across the gorge but this was never realised and was not submitted to the later competition.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Cork |first1=Tristan |title=Recognition at last for the mum-of-six who designed Bristol's Clifton Suspension Bridge – not Brunel |url=http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Recognition-mum-designed-Bristol-s-Clifton/story-29325251-detail/story.html |access-date=31 May 2016 |work=Bristol Post |date=27 May 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160528144235/http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Recognition-mum-designed-Bristol-s-Clifton/story-29325251-detail/story.html |archive-date=28 May 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Did Sarah Guppy Design the Clifton Suspension Bridge?|url=https://www.cliftonbridge.org.uk/did-sarah-guppy-design-clifton-suspension-bridge/|publisher=Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust|access-date=25 June 2018|archive-date=3 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403105906/https://www.cliftonbridge.org.uk/did-sarah-guppy-design-clifton-suspension-bridge/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
[[File:'St Vincent rock near Bristol' RMG PY6092.jpg|thumb|''St Vincent Rock'' before construction began]]
By 1829, Vick's bequest had reached £8,000, but it was estimated that a stone bridge would cost over ten times that.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Clifton Suspension Bridge |url=http://www.brunel200.com/suspension_bridge.htm |publisher=Brunel 200 |access-date=11 January 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130520131700/http://www.brunel200.com/suspension_bridge.htm |archive-date=20 May 2013 }}</ref> A competition was held to find a design for the bridge with a prize of 100 [[Guinea (British coin)|guineas]].{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=16}} Entries were received from 22 designers, including [[Samuel Brown (Royal Navy officer)|Samuel Brown]], [[James Meadows Rendel (engineer)|James Meadows Rendel]], [[William Tierney Clark]] and [[William Hazledine]]. Several were for stone bridges and had estimated costs of between £30,000 and £93,000. Brunel submitted four entries.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=16}} The judging committee rejected 17 of the 22 plans submitted, on the grounds of appearance or cost.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=18}} They then called in Scottish civil engineer [[Thomas Telford]] to make a final selection from the five remaining entries.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=18}} Telford rejected all the remaining designs, arguing that {{convert|577|ft|m}} was the maximum possible span. Telford was then asked to produce a design himself, which he did, proposing a {{convert|110|ft|m|adj=mid|-wide}} suspension bridge, supported on tall [[Gothic Revival architecture|Gothic]] towers, costing £52,000.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=18}}{{sfn|Vaughan|2003|pp=37–39}}{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=4-5}}

{{anchor|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1830}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1830
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act for building a Bridge over the River Avon, from Clifton in the County of Gloucester to the opposite Side of the River in the County of Somerset, and for making convenient Roads and Approaches to communicate therewith.
| year                  = 1830
| citation              = [[11 Geo. 4 & 1 Will. 4]]. c. lxix
| introduced_commons    =
| introduced_lords      =
| territorial_extent    =
| royal_assent          = 29 May 1830
| commencement          =
| expiry_date           =
| repeal_date           =
| amends                =
| replaces              =
| amendments            =
| repealing_legislation = Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1952
| related_legislation   =
| status                = repealed
| legislation_history   =
| theyworkforyou        =
| millbankhansard       =
| original_text         = https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/Geo4and1Will4/11/69/pdfs/ukla_18300069_en.pdf
| revised_text          =
| use_new_UK-LEG        =
| UK-LEG_title          =
| collapsed             = yes
}}
The Bridge Committee which had been set up to look at the designs sponsored the Clifton Bridge [[Bill (law)|Bill]] which became an [[act of Parliament (UK)|act]], the Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1830 ([[11 Geo. 4 & 1 Will. 4]]. c. lxix), when the bill received [[royal assent]] on 29 May 1830. The act appointed three [[trustee]]s to carry through the purposes of the act, with powers to appoint more up to a total not exceeding thirty five or less than twenty. The three trustees named in the act were the Master of the [[Society of Merchant Venturers]], the Senior Sheriff of the City and County of Bristol and [[Thomas Daniel (merchant)|Thomas Daniel]]. The act allowed a [[wrought iron]] suspension bridge to be built instead of stone, and tolls levied to recoup the cost.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=4-5}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Portman|first=Derek|date=2002|title=A Business History of the Clifton Suspension Bridge|journal=Construction History|volume=18|pages=3–20|jstor=41613843|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41613843}}</ref>

The three trustees named in the act met on 17 June 1830 and appointed further trustees, bringing the total up to 23. There were additions to this number in the weeks which followed, so by early July 1830 there were 31 in all, although not everyone had been formally sworn in by that date. Others included Thomas Durbin Brice, Master of the Society of Merchant Venturers, George Daubeny, John Cave, [[John Scandrett Harford]], George Hilhouse, Henry Bush, and Richard Guppy.<ref name=":0" />

The first full meeting of the trustees was held on 22 June 1830 in the [[Merchant Hall|Merchants Hall]] in Bristol. Alderman [[Thomas Daniel (merchant)|Thomas Daniel]] was in the chair. 86 people had committed £17,350, an average of just over £200 each.<ref name=":0" />

[[File:Life of Brunel - Plate I - Clifton Suspension Bridge by H Adlard.jpg|thumb|right|Brunel's initial and final designs]]

These funds raised during the first few months of 1830 were not sufficient for the construction. Despite this Brunel produced a new proposal costing £10,000 less than Telford's design and gained support for it in the local press. James Meadows Rendel, William Armstrong and William Hill also submitted new, cheaper proposals, complaining that the committee had not set a budget.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=20}} In 1831 a second competition was held, with new judges including [[Davies Gilbert]] and [[John Seaward]] examining the engineering qualities of the proposals. Thirteen designs were submitted; Telford's was the only one in which the chains achieved the weight per square inch required by the judges but it was rejected as being too expensive. The winner was declared to be a design by Smith and Hawkes of the Eagle Foundry in Birmingham.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=22}} Brunel had a personal meeting with Gilbert and persuaded him to change the decision. The committee then declared Brunel the winner and he was awarded a contract as project engineer.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|pp=6–7}} The winning design was for a suspension bridge with fashionably [[Ancient Egyptian architecture|Egyptian]]-influenced towers.{{sfn|Vaughan|2003|pp=37–39}} In 2010, newly discovered letters and documents revealed that, in producing his design, Brunel had not taken advice from his father, Sir [[Marc Isambard Brunel]], who had offered to help. The elder Brunel had recommended including a central support for the bridge, as he did not believe a single-span bridge of such length could be constructed. His son chose to ignore his advice.<ref>{{cite news|last=Savill |first=Richard |title=Clifton suspension bridge&nbsp;– with added pagoda |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8206625/Clifton-suspension-bridge-with-added-pagoda.html |access-date=10 March 2013 |work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|date=17 December 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131231071224/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8206625/Clifton-suspension-bridge-with-added-pagoda.html |archive-date=31 December 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Brown |first=Christopher |title=Brunel rejected father's pagoda plan for Clifton Suspension Bridge |url=http://www.bristol247.com/2010/12/17/brunel-rejected-fathers-pagoda-plan-for-clifton-suspension-bridge/ |publisher=Bristol 24-7 |access-date=10 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113054938/http://www.bristol247.com/2010/12/17/brunel-rejected-fathers-pagoda-plan-for-clifton-suspension-bridge/ |archive-date=13 November 2013 }}</ref>

===Construction===
[[File:St Vincents Rocks Clifton 1840.jpg|thumb|Partially completed bridge, c.1840]]
A ceremony to mark the start of the construction works was held Monday 20 June 1831.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stone |first=George Frederick |url=https://archive.org/details/stone-bristol-as-it-was/page/2/mode/2up |title=Bristol: as it was and as it is. A record of fifty years' progress |date=1909 |publisher=Walter Reid |location=Bristol |pages=3-6 |chapter=Clifton Suspension Bridge: incidents in its construction and history}}</ref> Work started on blasting of St. Vincent's Rock, on the Clifton side of the gorge. Four months later work was halted by the [[Bristol riots]], which took place after the [[House of Lords]] rejected the second [[Reform Act 1832|Reform Bill]], which aimed to eliminate some of the [[Rotten and pocket boroughs|rotten boroughs]] and give parliamentary seats to Britain's fast growing industrial towns such as Bristol.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bristol riots |work=Spartacus Education |url=http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/PRbristol.htm |access-date=7 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205002217/http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/PRbristol.htm |archive-date= 5 February 2007 }}</ref> Five to six hundred young men were involved in the riots and Brunel was sworn in as a [[special constable]]. The riots severely dented commercial confidence in Bristol; subscriptions to the bridge company ceased, and along with it, further construction of the bridge.<ref>{{cite web|title=Revolting riots in Queen Square |work=BBC Bristol |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content/madeinbristol/2004/04/riot/riot.shtml |access-date=3 July 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629082150/http://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content/madeinbristol/2004/04/riot/riot.shtml |archive-date=29 June 2011 }}</ref>

[[File:Suspension Bridge 1842.jpg|thumb|left|An artist's impression of what the Suspension Bridge would look like on completion, published in an 1842 guidebook.]]
After the passing of the act for the [[Great Western Railway]] reestablished financial confidence, work resumed in 1836, but subsequent investment proved woefully inadequate.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=32}} Despite the main contractors going bankrupt in 1837, the towers were built in unfinished stone.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=30}} To enable the transfer of materials, a {{convert|1000|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} iron bar, which was {{convert|1.25|in}} in diameter, had been drawn by [[Capstan (nautical)|capstan]] across the gorge. A contract was placed with [[Dowlais Ironworks]] to supply 600&nbsp;tons of bar iron, which was to be transported to the [[Copperhouse]] foundry to be forged into bar chains.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=32}} By 1843 funds were exhausted and another £30,000 was needed. As the work had exceeded the time limit stated in the act, all work stopped.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=13}} Brunel suggested building a deep water pier at [[Portbury]], which would make the bridge an essential road link, but funds for this scheme were not forthcoming.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=32}} In 1851, the ironwork was sold and used to build the Brunel-designed [[Royal Albert Bridge]] on the railway between [[Plymouth]] and [[Saltash]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Royal Albert Bridge, Saltash |url=http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=210 |publisher=Engineering Timelines |access-date=3 July 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120404195353/http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=210 |archive-date= 4 April 2012 }}</ref> The towers remained and during the 1850s intrepid passengers could cross the gorge in a basket slung from the iron bar.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=13}}

[[File:Commemorative plaque on the Clifton Suspension Bridge.jpg|right|thumb|The plaque on the bridge]]
Brunel died in 1859, without seeing the completion of the bridge. His colleagues in the [[Institution of Civil Engineers]] felt that completion of the Bridge would be a fitting memorial, and started to raise new funds.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=16}} In 1860, Brunel's [[Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges|Hungerford suspension bridge]] over the [[River Thames|Thames]] in London was demolished to make way for a new railway bridge to [[Charing Cross railway station]]. Its chains were purchased for use at Clifton.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=34}}

A revised design was made by [[William Henry Barlow]] and Sir [[John Hawkshaw]], with a wider, higher and sturdier deck than Brunel intended, with triple chains instead of double.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=16}}
[[File:Clifton Suspension bridge under construction 1.jpg|thumb|Construction of the Bridge c.1862]]
[[File:Clifton Suspension Bridge under construction c.1861.jpg|thumb|Further stages in construction of the bridge, c. 1862]]
It has been argued that the size and technology of these revisions was so great that the credit for its design should go to Barlow and Hawkshaw.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Elton |first1=Julia |title=Great Lives |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/greatlives |access-date=28 September 2014 |work=BBC Radio 4 |publisher=BBC |date=13 May 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140531103027/http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/greatlives |archive-date=31 May 2014 }}</ref> The towers remained in rough stone, rather than being finished in the Egyptian style.
[[File:Clifton Suspension Bridge under construction 3.jpg|thumb|Bridge construction, nearly completed]]
[[File:Suspension bridge at Clifton.jpg|thumb|left|An 1878 drawing of the Clifton Suspension Bridge]]

Work on the bridge was restarted in 1862. Initially a temporary bridge was created by pulling ropes across the gorge and making a footway of wire ropes with wood planks held together with iron hoops. This was used by the workers to move a "traveller", consisting of a light frame on wheels, to transport each link individually, which would eventually make up the chains supporting the bridge.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=36}} The chains are anchored in tapering tunnels, {{convert|25|m}} long,{{sfn|Richards|2010}} on both sides<!--better "both" than "either"--> of the bridge and plugs of [[Staffordshire blue brick]] infilled to prevent the chains being pulled out of the narrower tunnel mouth.

After completion of the chains, vertical suspension rods were hung from the links in the chains and large girders hung from these. The girders on either side then support the deck, which is {{convert|3|ft}} higher at the Clifton end than at Leigh Woods so that it gives the impression of being horizontal. The strength of the structure was tested by spreading 500&nbsp;tons of stone over the bridge. This caused it to sag by {{convert|7|in}}, but within the expected tolerances.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=14-19}} During this time a tunnel was driven through the rocks on the Leigh Woods side beneath the bridge to carry the [[Bristol Port Railway and Pier|Bristol Port Railway]] to [[Avonmouth]].{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=36}} The construction work was completed in 1864–111 years after a bridge at the site was first planned.<ref>{{cite web|title=Clifton Suspension Bridge |url=http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=58 |publisher=Engineering Timelines |access-date=3 July 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322113922/http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=58 |archive-date=22 March 2012 }}</ref>

===Operation===
[[File:Clifton.bridge.arp.750pix.jpg|alt=Suspension bridge between two brick built towers, over a wooded gorge, showing mud and water at the bottom. In the distance are hills.|thumb|left|View from the [[Observatory, Bristol|observatory]] on [[Clifton Down]]]]
On 8 December 1864, the bridge was lit by a combination of four electric [[arc lamps]], [[magnesium]] [[flares]] and [[limelight]]s for its ceremonial opening ceremony.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/bha048/page/n3/mode/2up Peter G. Lamb, ''Electricity in Bristol 1863-1948'' (Bristol Historical Association pamphlets, no. 48, 1981), p. 1]</ref> This was the earliest use of external electric lighting in Bristol. However, the lighting levels were inconsistent and the magnesium lamps were blown out by the wind.{{sfn|Christopher|2013|p=11}} The custom of lighting the bridge has continued with more recent events, although later thousands of electric light bulbs were attached to the bridge instead of flares.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|pp=22–25}}

{{anchor|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1952|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1980|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1986}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1952
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act to constitute the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust to incorporate the Trust and to make provision for the vesting in the Trustees of the property of the existing Trustees and for the constitution and proceedings of the Trustees to transfer to the Trustees the undertaking of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Company and to provide for the winding up and dissolution of that company to confer powers on the Trustees in relation to the said bridge and to the charging of tolls to make provision regarding the finances of the said trust to repeal the Acts relating to the Trustees and to the company and for other purposes.
| year                  = 1952
| citation              = [[15 & 16 Geo. 6 & 1 Eliz. 2]]. c. xli
| introduced_commons    =
| introduced_lords      =
| territorial_extent    =
| royal_assent          = 1 August 1952
| commencement          =
| expiry_date           =
| repeal_date           =
| amends                =
| replaces              = {{ubli|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1830|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1836|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1841|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1845|Clifton Suspension Bridge 1848|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1861|Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1888}}
| amendments            =
| repealing_legislation =
| related_legislation   =
| status                =
| legislation_history   =
| theyworkforyou        =
| millbankhansard       =
| original_text         = https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/Geo6and1Eliz2/15-16/41/pdfs/ukla_19520041_en.pdf
| revised_text          =
| use_new_UK-LEG        =
| UK-LEG_title          =
| collapsed             = yes
}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1980
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act to alter the constitution of the Trustees of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust; to make provision as to the investment of moneys of the Trust and for the repeal and amendment of certain provisions of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1952; and for other purposes.
| year                  = 1980
| citation              = [[List of acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1980|1980]] c. xxii
| introduced_commons    =
| introduced_lords      =
| territorial_extent    =
| royal_assent          = 17 July 1980
| commencement          =
| expiry_date           =
| repeal_date           =
| amends                =
| replaces              =
| amendments            =
| repealing_legislation =
| related_legislation   =
| status                =
| legislation_history   =
| theyworkforyou        =
| millbankhansard       =
| original_text         = https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/1980/22/pdfs/ukla_19800022_en.pdf
| revised_text          =
| use_new_UK-LEG        =
| UK-LEG_title          =
| collapsed             = yes
}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1986
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act to authorise the Trustees of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust to provide or assist in the provision of a museum in the vicinity of the said bridge; and for other purposes.
| year                  = 1986
| citation              = [[List of acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1986|1986]] c. xiv
| introduced_commons    =
| introduced_lords      =
| territorial_extent    =
| royal_assent          = 8 July 1986
| commencement          =
| expiry_date           =
| repeal_date           =
| amends                =
| replaces              =
| amendments            =
| repealing_legislation =
| related_legislation   =
| status                =
| legislation_history   =
| theyworkforyou        =
| millbankhansard       =
| original_text         = https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/1986/14/pdfs/ukla_19860014_en.pdf
| revised_text          =
| use_new_UK-LEG        =
| UK-LEG_title          =
| collapsed             = yes
}}
In 1860 the Clifton Bridge Company was set up to oversee the final stages of completion and manage the operation of the bridge. They paid £50 each year to the trustees who gradually purchased the shares in the company. The revenues from tolls were minimal initially as there was not much traffic; however, this increased after 1920 with greater car ownership. In 1949 the trustees purchased all the outstanding shares and debentures.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=42}} The bridge is managed by a charitable trust, originally formed by the [[Society of Merchant Venturers]] following Vick's bequest.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/archives/a4162248-24eb-31f9-8613-aa1f172c07d1?component=79646d2b-ed3f-308d-8fb3-8058feee0cae|title=Brunel Collection: Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust (1830&nbsp;– present) Papers|access-date=7 March 2018}}</ref> The trust was authorised to manage the bridge and collect tolls by acts of Parliament in 1952, 1980 and 1986.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://opencharities.org/charities/205658 |title=Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust |publisher=Open Charities |access-date=10 January 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141012132249/http://opencharities.org/charities/205658 |archive-date=12 October 2014 }}</ref> A [[Toll bridge|toll]] is levied on vehicles,<ref name="tollrise">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-17028359 |title=Clifton Suspension Bridge toll to rise to £1 |publisher=BBC News|date=14 February 2012 |access-date=9 March 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217045227/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-17028359 |archive-date=17 February 2012 }}</ref> but the £0.05 toll that the act allows for cyclists or pedestrians is not collected.<ref>{{cite web|title=How much is the toll to cross the Bridge? |url=http://www.cliftonbridge.org.uk/faqs/toll |publisher=Clifton Suspension Bridge |access-date=3 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111114005257/http://www.cliftonbridge.org.uk/faqs/toll |archive-date=14 November 2011 }}</ref>[[File:Clifton Suspension Bridge in 1954.jpg|thumb|The bridge in 1954, detailing the little traffic that passed across it at that time]]Human toll collectors were replaced by automated machines in 1975. The tolls are used to pay for the upkeep of the bridge, including the strengthening of the chain anchor points, which was done in 1925 and 1939, and regular painting and maintenance, which is carried out from a motorised cradle slung beneath the deck.{{sfn|McIlwain|1996|p=24-25}} By 2008 over 4 million vehicles crossed the bridge each year.{{sfn|Andrews|Pascoe|2008|p=42}}
In February 2012, the bridge trustees applied to the [[Department for Transport]] to increase the toll to £1,<ref name=tollrise/> subsequently implemented on 24 April 2014.<ref>{{cite news|title=Clifton Suspension Bridge toll to rise from 50p to £1 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-26958520 |publisher=BBC News|date=9 April 2014 |access-date=9 November 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141112045845/http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-26958520 |archive-date=12 November 2014 }}</ref>

On 1 April 1979, the first modern [[Bungee jumping|bungee jumps]] were made from the bridge by members of the [[University of Oxford]] [[Dangerous Sports Club]].<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Aerial Extreme Sports |year=2008 |url=http://library.thinkquest.org/C0123122/historybungee.htm |title=History of Bungee |access-date=5 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728105941/http://library.thinkquest.org/C0123122/historybungee.htm |archive-date=28 July 2011 }}</ref> In 2003 and 2004, the weight of crowds travelling to and from the [[Ashton Court Festival]] and [[Bristol International Balloon Fiesta]] put such great strain on the bridge that it was decided to close the bridge to all motor traffic and pedestrians during the events. The closure of the bridge for major annual events has continued each year since then.<ref>{{cite news | title=Suspension bridge shut for events | publisher=BBC News| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/4633715.stm | access-date=25 March 2007 | date=29 June 2005}}</ref>

[[File:CliftonSupensionLit.jpg|thumb|The bridge illuminated; these lights have since been replaced with [[LED]]s]]

On 26 November 2003, the last [[Concorde]] flight (Concorde 216) flew over the bridge before landing at [[Bristol Filton Airport|Filton Aerodrome]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The Last Flight Home |url=http://www.avcollect.com/art_sb_concorde5.html |publisher=Aviation Art |access-date=3 July 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415104203/http://www.avcollect.com/art_sb_concorde5.html |archive-date=15 April 2012 }}</ref> In April 2006, the bridge was the centrepiece of the Brunel 200 weekend, celebrating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. At the climax of the celebration a [[fireworks|firework display]] was launched from the bridge.<ref>{{cite web|title=Brunel 200 Fireworks |work=BBC Bristol |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content/image_galleries/brunel_fireworks_april_gallery.shtml |access-date=25 March 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060421043332/http://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content/image_galleries/brunel_fireworks_april_gallery.shtml |archive-date=21 April 2006 }}</ref> The celebrations also saw the activation of an [[LED]]-based lighting array to illuminate the bridge.<ref>{{cite web|title=LEDs help to light Clifton Suspension Bridge |url=http://www.ledsmagazine.com/features/3/4/3 |work=LEDs magazine |access-date=17 May 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070824024435/http://www.ledsmagazine.com/features/3/4/3 |archive-date=24 August 2007 }}</ref>

On 4 April 2009, the bridge was shut for one night to allow a crack in one of the support hangers to be repaired.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/7983615.stm |title=Suspension bridge closed by fault |date=4 April 2009 |publisher=BBC |access-date=4 April 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090405204104/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/7983615.stm |archive-date= 5 April 2009 }}</ref> On 23 May 2012, the London 2012 [[2012 Summer Olympics torch relay|Olympic Torch relay]] crossed over the bridge, where two of the torchbearers came together in a "kiss" to exchange the flame in the middle of Brunel's iconic landmark.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18172940 |title=Fireworks mark Olympic torch's suspension bridge crossing |date=23 April 2012 |publisher=BBC |access-date=23 April 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120523121047/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18172940 |archive-date=23 May 2012 }}</ref> The bridge carries four million vehicles per year,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/phy03.sci.phys.mfw.bbsuspension/clifton-suspension-bridge/ |title=Clifton Suspension Bridge |publisher=PBS LearningMedia |access-date=8 April 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150415201435/http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/phy03.sci.phys.mfw.bbsuspension/clifton-suspension-bridge/ |archive-date=15 April 2015 }}</ref> along part of the B3129 road.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bristol to Portishead Loop Cycle Route |url=http://www.cycle-route.com/routes/Bristol_to_Portishead_Loop-Cycle-Route-5056.html |publisher=Cycle Route |access-date=8 March 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130128071831/http://www.cycle-route.com/routes/Bristol_to_Portishead_Loop-Cycle-Route-5056.html |archive-date=28 January 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=B3129 |url=http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=B3129 |publisher=SABRE |access-date=8 March 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013222211/http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=B3129 |archive-date=13 October 2012 }}</ref> The bridge is a Grade I [[listed building]].<ref>{{NHLE|desc=Clifton Suspension Bridge |num=1205734 |access-date=9 May 2006 }}</ref>

In November 2011 it was announced that a new visitor centre, costing nearly £2 million, was to be built at the Leigh Woods end of the bridge to replace the temporary building currently being used. The new facilities were scheduled to be completed before the 150th anniversary of the opening, which was celebrated on 8 December 2014.<ref>{{cite web|title=New heritage and learning centre |url=http://www.cliftonbridge.org.uk/news/new-heritage-and-learning-centre-clifton-suspension-bridge-will-mark-150th-anniversary-official |publisher=Clifton Suspension Bridge |access-date=8 November 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403180508/http://www.cliftonbridge.org.uk/news/new-heritage-and-learning-centre-clifton-suspension-bridge-will-mark-150th-anniversary-official |archive-date= 3 April 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=New Clifton Suspension Bridge visitor centre planned |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-15634015 |access-date=8 November 2011 |publisher=BBC |date=8 November 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111111054545/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-15634015 |archive-date=11 November 2011 }}</ref> In December 2012 it was announced that the bridge had received £595,000 of funding from the [[Heritage Lottery Fund]] to improve the visitor centre.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/pound-1-3m-lottery-windfall-enhance-finest/story-17635298-detail/story.html |title=£1.3m lottery windfall to enhance two of our finest Victorian landmarks |publisher=This is Bristol |access-date=3 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121223074202/http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/pound-1-3m-lottery-windfall-enhance-finest/story-17635298-detail/story.html |archive-date=23 December 2012 }}</ref>