Love locks adorn New Jersey interstate overpass

BORDENTOWN, N.J. (WPVI) -- If you can block out the sound of traffic rumbling beneath you, something romantic is happening on a scenic overpass above I-295 in Bordentown.

Hooked to the chain-link fencing on the overpass are dozens of locks. 'Love Locks,' they're called, symbolizing unbreakable love.

Some show the names of couples, when they got together, or the date the locks were left.

PHOTOS: Love Locks on I-295 Overpass

"I think it's very cute because it's like a devotion to each other, just expressing how they feel about each other," said Michaela Mabin of Bordentown.

So far there are more than 100 locks on the overpass, but driving by you wouldn't even notice them!

The messages on the locks are not limited to couples.

"I'm reading there's people that it's the symbol of their love for their deceased loved one," said Dawn Mabin.

"Some of them are for dads, some of them are couples. So I think it's nice there's all different kinds of love," Michaela said.

A local couple had heard about the famous love locks bridge at Pont des Arts in Paris and thought it would be neat to have one here in Jersey.

Shannon Douglas and her partner Dianne created an Instagram page called "scenicoverlocks" and have encouraged others who've put locks on the walking bridge to post their pictures there, too.

"I thought it would be a cool thing. We came up here and we put one lock up and, as we were passing every day, see more and more locks starting to come," Shannon said.

The tradition started with a teen novel in 2006 and spread around the world. In Paris, almost a million locks on that Pont des Arts Bridge had to be removed because the weight of them was damaging the structure.

This is Jersey of course, not Paris. A bridge over the Seine River may be considered a lot more romantic than I-295, but hats off to the couples trying to keep romance alive!