US tourist drives car onto Ponte Vecchio

(ANSA) - ROME, JAN 27 - A 34-year-old US tourist drove a hirecar onto the iconic Ponte Vecchio bridge in Florence on Thursdayafternoon, sources said Friday. The California man told police he had been looking for a parkingspace and had not realized he was on the medieval bridge. He was fined for driving in a pedestrian zone and reported fordriving without an international license. The Ponte Vecchio ("Old Bridge") s a medieval stoneclosed-spandrel segmental arch bridge over the Arno River, inFlorence, Italy. The only bridge in Florence spared from destruction during theSecond World War, it is noted for the shops built along it;building shops on such bridges was once a common practice. Butchers, tanners, and farmers initially occupied the shops; thepresent tenants are jewelers, art dealers, and souvenir sellers. (ANSA).