The so-called "Locks of Love" that began appearing last summer on the Main Street Bridge will be gone next month because they are considered to be a hazard. The news is disappointing to Carolyn and Tim Duclos, who put up the first lock on Aug. 6--the eve of their 30th wedding anniversary.

"We first saw the locks in Paris," Carolyn said. "There was a pedestrian bridge there, and there were quite a few locks on it. It's been going on for decades."

The Ducloses didn't put a lock up in Paris when they were there, but later they had a friend do it for them. "It's pointless to have a lock in Paris that we can't see, so I said, 'Why don't we put one up in town?' That's how the lock caper started," Tim said.

At its height, there were more than two dozen locks on the bridge's cyclone fence, but people have started removing them since signs were posted a few weeks ago saying, "This bridge is owned by CalTrans. CalTrans regulations do not permit private items such as locks on state property." Removal is scheduled for Feb. 1, and the locks will be kept at the town corporation yard at 41 Miles Ave. until Feb. 15 so people can retrieve them.

The locks that are still on the bridge say things like "Mom We Love You" and have become quite a tourist attraction. "I see people stop there all the time," Carolyn said.

She and Tim are mystified as to why the town and CalTrans want to take them down.

They pose a risk, CalTrans spokesman Bernard Walik said in an email. "As the population of locks increases, the weight load on the fence may compromise the integrity of the fencing material during heavy winds. All it takes is one lock to accidentally drop down to the freeway and strike a vehicle, or even worse, the windshield of a passing vehicle, and we could have a tragic incident that could have been avoided."

The lock removal was instigated by the town. Parks and public works director Todd Capurso said, "It is a CalTrans bridge, but the town is responsible for the maintenance of the bridge from the deck upward, and we must maintain it to their standards. This type of installation is not allowed per CalTrans standards and specifications. It's one of those things that if it goes unchecked, you could end up with these all over the bridge. That would be a problem from both a safety and aesthetics perspective."

So the short-lived love experiment will soon be coming to an end, although the Ducloses say they're looking for other places where the locks might receive a warmer welcome. "I'll wait until the last minute, but I'll take ours down," Tim said.

The love locks have become an international phenomenon, with Wikipedia listing sites in 29 countries that have them. The Wikipedia article also notes, "Even bucolic Los Gatos, California's Main Street Bridge has joined in, with not only anniversaries and engagements, but birthdays and graduations."

The Ducloses say there will soon be an installation of love locks in Atlantic City, N.J., too. "We have a good friend, Lance Fung, who is an artist, and he considers this to be a work of art in progress," Carolyn said. "He's curating a large show in Atlantic City, and he likes the idea of the love locks so much that he's incorporating them into his show."