The timber bridge quickly succumbed to marine wood worm Teredo Navalis and began to progressively collapse.

[9][10] The council wasn't able to fully repair the structure and its remnants took two years to fall away into the river, along with some components of the partly built iron bridge.

[2] Following resolution of the issue of the debt owed to the liquidators of the Bank Of Queensland[5] in 1871, an English company, Peto, Brassey and Co, agreed to complete the bridge.

[12] However a lack of revenue and widespread community objections to the tolls forced its transfer to the Colonial Government.

[6] The bridge included a turning span to allow tall-masted river traffic to pass upstream.

[5] After the Council lost a court action in 1885 brought by a ship owner when it refused to operate the swing, the Government swiftly passed legislation fixing the bridge.

Tram numbers on the bridge had to be restricted and cars limited to the outer lanes as a result.

[21] A portion of the southern abutment of the previous bridge remains adjacent to the current bridge, including a pedestrian arch, a short remnant of tram track and a memorial to Hector Vasyli, a young boy who was killed in a traffic accident at that point when waving to servicemen returning from the First World War.

Planning commenced on a new bridge in 1953, however in 1957 an inspection revealed that there had been no deterioration since 1949, and with careful maintenance, its life would be indefinite.