 The first Chelsea Bridge was proposed in the 1840s as part of a major development of marshlands on the south bank of the Thames into the new Battersea Park . It was a suspension bridge intended to provide convenient access from the densely populated north bank to the new park . Although built and operated by the government , tolls were charged initially in an effort to recoup the cost of the bridge . Work on the nearby Chelsea Embankment delayed construction and so the bridge , initially called Victoria Bridge , did not open until 1858 . Although well @-@ received architecturally , as a toll bridge it was unpopular with the public , and Parliament felt obliged to make it toll @-@ free on Sundays . The bridge was less of a commercial success than had been anticipated , partly because of competition from the newly built Albert Bridge nearby . It was acquired by the Metropolitan Board of Works in 1877 , and the tolls were abolished in 1879 . 
