connections opening on the north bank meant the area on the Fulham side remained undeveloped, and bridge usage was low. Tolmé's design was not sturdy enough to carry heavy vehicles, and drainage problems on the approach road to the north discouraged vehicles from using Wandsworth Bridge. Public ownership Wandsworth Bridge never raised enough toll revenue to cover the costs of repairs and maintenance. In 1877 the Metropolis Toll Bridges Act was passed, and in 1880 Wandsworth Bridge, along with other London bridges, was taken into the public ownership of the Metropolitan Board of Works. Despite having run at a loss throughout its lifetime, the Board of Works paid £53,313 (about £ in ) for the bridge, a substantial premium on its £40,000 construction cost. On 26 June 1880 Edward, Prince of Wales, and Alexandra, Princess of Wales, presided over a ceremony abolishing tolls over the three bridges. By the time it was taken into public ownership, the bridge was in very poor condition. In 1891 a weight limit of 5 tons was introduced, and in 1897 a speed limit was imposed. With its narrowness and weight restrictions, by this point it was effectively a footbridge. As narrowness and weight restrictions meant that it was unable to carry buses, in 1926 a Royal Commission recommended its replacement and the London County Council agreed to finance a new bridge on the site. In 1928 it was decided instead to give priority to widening the much busier Putney Bridge, and the replacement of Wandsworth Bridge was delayed. 1940 bridge In 1935, the Ministry of Transport agreed to finance 60 percent of the projected £503,000 (about £ in ) cost of a replacement bridge, and the London County Council approved a new design, by Sir Thomas Peirson Frank, for a three-span steel cantilever bridge in width, allowing two lanes of traffic in each direction, and designed to allow widening to if necessary. The design featured distinctive low curves, intended to reflect the low riverbanks in the area. The design was presented to the Royal Fine Art Commission for approval, with a covering note stating that "in the design of the bridge a severe simplicity of treatment has been carried out, expressed in a technique essentially related to the material proposed for its construction". Although the Commission expressed concern that the bridge might be too narrow, the design was approved. The work was put out