Golden Gate Bridge - wikipedia Golden Gate Bridge Golden Gate Bridge View of the Golden Gate Bridge from Marshall 's Beach in the Presidio of San Francisco Coordinates 37 ° 49 ′ 11 '' N 122 ° 28 ′ 43 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 37.81972 ° N 122.47861 ° W ﻿ / 37.81972 ; - 122.47861 Coordinates : 37 ° 49 ′ 11 '' N 122 ° 28 ′ 43 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 37.81972 ° N 122.47861 ° W ﻿ / 37.81972 ; - 122.47861 Carries 6 lanes of US 101 / SR 1 ( see below ), pedestrians and bicycles. Crosses Golden Gate Locale San Francisco, California and Marin County, California, U.S. Official name Golden Gate Bridge Maintained by Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District Characteristics Design Art Deco, Suspension, truss arch & truss causeways Material Steel Total length 8,981 ft ( 2,737.4 m ), about 1.7 mi ( 2.7 km ) Width 90 ft ( 27.4 m ) Height 746 ft ( 227.4 m ) Longest span 4,200 ft ( 1,280.2 m ) Clearance above 14 ft ( 4.3 m ) at toll gates, Trucks can not pass Clearance below 220 ft ( 67.1 m ) at high tide History Architect Irving Morrow Engineering design by Joseph Strauss, and Charles Ellis Construction start January 5, 1933 ( 1933 - 01 - 05 ) Construction end April 19, 1937 ( 1937 - 04 - 20 ) Opened May 27, 1937 ; 80 years ago ( 1937 - 05 - 27 ) Statistics Daily traffic 110,000 Toll Cars ( southbound only ) $7.50 ( Pay by plate ), $6.50 ( FasTrak ), $4.50 ( carpools during peak hours, FasTrak only ) California Historical Landmark Designated June 18, 1987 Reference no. 974 San Francisco Designated Landmark Designated May 21, 1999 Reference no. 222 Golden Gate Bridge Bridges in the San Francisco Bay The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the one - mile - wide ( 1.6 km ) strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the American city of San Francisco, California -- the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula -- to Marin County, carrying both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 across the strait. The bridge is one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco, California, and the United States. It has been declared one of the Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers. The Frommer 's travel guide describes the Golden Gate Bridge as `` possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world. '' At the time of its opening in 1937, it was both the longest and the tallest suspension bridge in the world, with a main span of 4,200 feet ( 1,280 m ) and a total height of 746 feet ( 227 m ). Contents 1 History 1.1 Ferry service 1.2 Conception 1.3 Design 1.4 Finance 1.5 Construction 1.6 Opening festivities, 50th, and 75th anniversaries 2 Structural specifications 3 Aesthetics 4 Traffic 4.1 Usage and tourism 4.2 Tolls 4.3 Congestion pricing 5 Issues 5.1 Suicides 5.2 Wind 5.3 Seismic vulnerability and improvements 6 In popular culture 7 See also 8 References 9 Further reading 10 External links History Ferry service Golden Gate with Fort Point in foreground, c. 1891 Before the bridge was built, the only practical short route between San Francisco and what is now Marin County was by boat across a section of San Francisco Bay. A ferry service began as early as 1820, with a regularly scheduled service beginning in the 1840s for the purpose of transporting water to San Francisco. The Sausalito Land and Ferry Company service, launched in 1867, eventually became the Golden Gate Ferry Company, a Southern Pacific Railroad subsidiary, the largest ferry operation in the world by the late 1920s. Once for railroad passengers and customers only, Southern Pacific 's automobile ferries became very profitable and important to the regional economy. The ferry crossing between the Hyde Street Pier in San Francisco and Sausalito in Marin County took approximately 20 minutes and cost US $1.00 per vehicle, a price later reduced to compete with the new bridge. The trip from the San Francisco Ferry Building took 27 minutes. Many wanted to build a bridge to connect San Francisco to Marin County. San Francisco was the largest American city still served primarily by ferry boats. Because it did not have a permanent link with communities around the bay, the city 's growth rate was below the national average. Many experts said that a bridge could not be built across the 6,700 ft ( 2,042 m ) strait, which had strong, swirling tides and currents, with water 372 ft ( 113 m ) deep at the center of the channel, and frequent strong winds. Experts said that ferocious winds and blinding fogs would prevent construction and operation. Conception Although the idea of a bridge spanning the Golden Gate was not new, the proposal that eventually took hold was made in a 1916 San Francisco Bulletin article by former engineering student James Wilkins. San Francisco 's City Engineer estimated the cost at $100 million, which would have been $2.12 billion in 2009, and impractical for the time. He asked bridge engineers whether it could be built for less. One who responded, Joseph Strauss, was an ambitious engineer and poet who had, for his graduate thesis, designed a 55 - mile - long ( 89 km ) railroad bridge across the Bering Strait. At the time, Strauss had completed some 400 drawbridges -- most of which were inland -- and nothing on the scale of the new project. Strauss 's initial drawings were for a massive cantilever on each side of the strait, connected by a central suspension segment, which Strauss promised could be built for $17 million. Local authorities agreed to proceed only on the assurance that Strauss would alter the design and accept input from several consulting project experts. A suspension - bridge design was considered the most practical, because of recent advances in metallurgy. Strauss spent more than a decade drumming up support in Northern California. The bridge faced opposition, including litigation, from many sources. The Department of War was concerned that the bridge would interfere with ship traffic. The navy feared that a ship collision or sabotage to the bridge could block the entrance to one of its main harbors. Unions demanded guarantees that local workers would be favored for construction jobs. Southern Pacific Railroad, one of the most powerful business interests in California, opposed the bridge as competition to its ferry fleet and filed a lawsuit against the project, leading to a mass boycott of the ferry service. In May 1924, Colonel Herbert Deakyne held the second hearing on the Bridge on behalf of the Secretary of War in a request to use federal land for construction. Deakyne, on behalf of the Secretary of War, approved the transfer of land needed for the bridge structure and leading roads to the `` Bridging the Golden Gate Association '' and both San Francisco County and Marin County, pending further bridge plans by Strauss. Another ally was the fledgling automobile industry, which supported the development of roads and bridges to increase demand for automobiles. The bridge 's name was first used when the project was initially discussed in 1917 by M.M. O'Shaughnessy, city engineer of San Francisco, and Strauss. The name became official with the passage of the Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District Act by the state legislature in 1923, creating a special district to design, build and finance the bridge. San Francisco and most of the counties along the North Coast of California joined the Golden Gate Bridge District, with the exception being Humboldt County, whose residents opposed the bridge 's construction and the traffic it would generate. Design South tower seen from walkway, with Art Deco elements Strauss was chief engineer in charge of overall design and construction of the bridge project. However, because he had little understanding or experience with cable - suspension designs, responsibility for much of the engineering and architecture fell on other experts. Strauss 's initial design proposal ( two double cantilever spans linked by a central suspension segment ) was unacceptable from a visual standpoint. The final graceful suspension design was conceived and championed by Leon Moisseiff, the engineer of the Manhattan Bridge in New York City. Irving Morrow, a relatively unknown residential architect, designed the overall shape of the bridge towers, the lighting scheme, and Art Deco elements, such as the tower decorations, streetlights, railing, and walkways. The famous International Orange color was originally used as a sealant for the bridge. The US Navy had wanted it to be painted with black and yellow stripes to ensure visibility by passing ships. Senior engineer Charles Alton Ellis, collaborating remotely with Moisseiff, was the principal engineer of the project. Moisseiff produced the basic structural design, introducing his `` deflection theory '' by which a thin, flexible roadway would flex in the wind, greatly reducing stress by transmitting forces via suspension cables to the bridge towers. Although the Golden Gate Bridge design has proved sound, a later Moisseiff design, the original Tacoma Narrows Bridge, collapsed in a strong windstorm soon after it was completed, because of an unexpected aeroelastic flutter. Ellis was also tasked with designing a `` bridge within a bridge '' in the southern abutment, to avoid the need to demolish Fort Point, a pre -- Civil War masonry fortification viewed, even then, as worthy of historic preservation. He penned a graceful steel arch spanning the fort and carrying the roadway to the bridge 's southern anchorage. Below Golden Gate Bridge Ellis was a Greek scholar and mathematician who at one time was a University of Illinois professor of engineering despite having no engineering degree. He eventually earned a degree in civil engineering from the University of Illinois prior to designing the Golden Gate Bridge and spent the last twelve years of his career as a professor at Purdue University. He became an expert in structural design, writing the standard textbook of the time. Ellis did much of the technical and theoretical work that built the bridge, but he received none of the credit in his lifetime. In November 1931, Strauss fired Ellis and replaced him with a former subordinate, Clifford Paine, ostensibly for wasting too much money sending telegrams back and forth to Moisseiff. Ellis, obsessed with the project and unable to find work elsewhere during the Depression, continued working 70 hours per week on an unpaid basis, eventually turning in ten volumes of hand calculations. With an eye toward self - promotion and posterity, Strauss downplayed the contributions of his collaborators who, despite receiving little recognition or compensation, are largely responsible for the final form of the bridge. He succeeded in having himself credited as the person most responsible for the design and vision of the bridge. Only much later were the contributions of the others on the design team properly appreciated. In May 2007, the Golden Gate Bridge District issued a formal report on 70 years of stewardship of the famous bridge and decided to give Ellis major credit for the design of the bridge. The height, depth, and length of the span from end to end, looking west The Golden Gate Bridge at sunset, as seen from just north of Alcatraz Island Finance The Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District, authorized by an act of the California Legislature, was incorporated in 1928 as the official entity to design, construct, and finance the Golden Gate Bridge. However, after the Wall Street Crash of 1929, the District was unable to raise the construction funds, so it lobbied for a $30 million bond measure. The bonds were approved in November 1930, by votes in the counties affected by the bridge. The construction budget at the time of approval was $27 million. However, the District was unable to sell the bonds until 1932, when Amadeo Giannini, the founder of San Francisco -- based Bank of America, agreed on behalf of his bank to buy the entire issue in order to help the local economy. Construction Construction began on January 5, 1933. The project cost more than $35 million, ( $493 million in 2016 dollars ) completing ahead of schedule and $1.3 million under budget. The Golden Gate Bridge construction project was carried out by the McClintic - Marshall Construction Co., a subsidiary of Bethlehem Steel Corporation founded by Howard H. McClintic and Charles D. Marshall, both of Lehigh University. 1.2 million steel rivets hold the bridge together. This is a segment of one of those replaced during the seismic retrofit of the bridge after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Strauss remained head of the project, overseeing day - to - day construction and making some groundbreaking contributions. A graduate of the University of Cincinnati, he placed a brick from his alma mater 's demolished McMicken Hall in the south anchorage before the concrete was poured. He innovated the use of movable safety netting beneath the construction site, which saved the lives of many otherwise - unprotected ironworkers. Of eleven men killed from falls during construction, ten were killed on February 17, 1937, when the bridge was near completion when the net failed under the stress of a scaffold that had fallen. The workers ' platform that was attached to a rolling hanger on a track collapsed when the bolts that were connected to the track were too small and the amount of weight was too great to bear. The platform fell into the safety net, but was too heavy and the net gave way. Two out of the twelve workers survived the 200 - foot ( 61 m ) fall into the icy waters, including the 37 - year - old foreman, Slim Lambert. Nineteen others who were saved by the net over the course of construction became members of their Half Way to Hell Club. The project was finished and opened May 27, 1937. The Bridge Round House diner was then included in the southeastern end of the Golden Gate Bridge, adjacent to the tourist plaza which was renovated in 2012. The Bridge Round House, an Art Deco design by Alfred Finnila completed in 1938, has been popular throughout the years as a starting point for various commercial tours of the bridge and an unofficial gift shop. The diner was renovated in 2012 and the gift shop was then removed as a new, official gift shop has been included in the adjacent plaza. During the bridge work, the Assistant Civil Engineer of California Alfred Finnila had overseen the entire iron work of the bridge as well as half of the bridge 's road work. With the death of Jack Balestreri in April 2012, all workers involved in the original construction are now deceased. Opening festivities, 50th, and 75th anniversaries View of the Golden Gate Bridge and Fort Point from Marine Drive. The bridge - opening celebration began on May 27, 1937 and lasted for one week. The day before vehicle traffic was allowed, 200,000 people crossed either on foot or on roller skates. On opening day, Mayor Angelo Rossi and other officials rode the ferry to Marin, then crossed the bridge in a motorcade past three ceremonial `` barriers '', the last a blockade of beauty queens who required Joseph Strauss to present the bridge to the Highway District before allowing him to pass. An official song, `` There 's a Silver Moon on the Golden Gate '', was chosen to commemorate the event. Strauss wrote a poem that is now on the Golden Gate Bridge entitled `` The Mighty Task is Done. '' The next day, President Roosevelt pushed a button in Washington, D.C. signaling the official start of vehicle traffic over the Bridge at noon. As the celebration got out of hand there was a small riot in the uptown Polk Gulch area. Weeks of civil and cultural activities called `` the Fiesta '' followed. A statue of Strauss was moved in 1955 to a site near the bridge. In May 1987, as part of the 50th anniversary celebration, the Golden Gate Bridge district again closed the bridge to automobile traffic and allowed pedestrians to cross the bridge. However, this celebration attracted 750,000 to 1,000,000 people, and ineffective crowd control meant the bridge became congested with roughly 300,000 people, causing the center span of the bridge to flatten out under the weight. Although the bridge is designed to flex in that way under heavy loads, and was estimated not to have exceeded 40 % of the yielding stress of the suspension cables, bridge officials stated that uncontrolled pedestrian access was not being considered as part of the 75th anniversary on Sunday, May 27, 2012, because of the additional law enforcement costs required `` since 9 / 11 ''. A pedestrian poses at the old railing on opening day, 1937 Play media Opening of the Golden Gate Bridge Official invitation to the opening of the bridge. This copy was sent to the City of Seattle Structural specifications On the south side of the bridge a 36.5 - inch - wide ( 93 cm ) cross-section of the cable, containing 27,572 wires, is on display. Until 1964, the Golden Gate Bridge had the longest suspension bridge main span in the world, at 4,200 feet ( 1,300 m ). Since 1964 its main span length has been surpassed by ten bridges ; it now has the second - longest main span in the United States, after the Verrazano - Narrows Bridge in New York City. The total length of the Golden Gate Bridge from abutment to abutment is 8,981 feet ( 2,737 m ). The Golden Gate Bridge 's clearance above high water averages 220 feet ( 67 m ) while its towers, at 746 feet ( 227 m ) above the water, were the world 's tallest on a suspension bridge until 1993 when it was surpassed by the Mezcala Bridge, in Mexico. The weight of the roadway is hung from 250 pairs of vertical suspender ropes, which are attached to two main cables. The main cables pass over the two main towers and are fixed in concrete at each end. Each cable is made of 27,572 strands of wire. The total length of galvanized steel wire used to fabricate both main cables is estimated to be 80,000 miles ( 130,000 km ). The bridge has approximately 1,200,000 total rivets. Aesthetics The color of the bridge is officially an orange vermilion called international orange. The color was selected by consulting architect Irving Morrow because it complements the natural surroundings and enhances the bridge 's visibility in fog. Aesthetics was the foremost reason why the first design of Joseph Strauss was rejected. Upon re-submission of his bridge construction plan, he added details, such as lighting, to outline the bridge 's cables and towers. In 1999, it was ranked fifth on the List of America 's Favorite Architecture by the American Institute of Architects. The bridge was originally painted with red lead primer and a lead - based topcoat, which was touched up as required. In the mid-1960s, a program was started to improve corrosion protection by stripping the original paint and repainting the bridge with zinc silicate primer and vinyl topcoats. Since 1990, acrylic topcoats have been used instead for air - quality reasons. The program was completed in 1995 and it is now maintained by 38 painters who touch up the paintwork where it becomes seriously corroded. A view of the Golden Gate Bridge from the Marin Headlands on a foggy morning at sunrise View of the northern tower of the bridge Traffic Installation of the movable median barrier system in January 2015 Play media Testing the newly installed movable barrier. Most maps and signage mark the bridge as part of the concurrency between U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1. Although part of the National Highway System, the bridge is not officially part of California 's Highway System. For example, under the California Streets and Highways Code § 401, Route 101 ends at `` the approach to the Golden Gate Bridge '' and then resumes at `` a point in Marin County opposite San Francisco ''. The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District has jurisdiction over the segment of highway that crosses the bridge instead of the California Department of Transportation ( Caltrans ). The movable median barrier between the lanes is moved several times daily to conform to traffic patterns. On weekday mornings, traffic flows mostly southbound into the city, so four of the six lanes run southbound. Conversely, on weekday afternoons, four lanes run northbound. During off - peak periods and weekends, traffic is split with three lanes in each direction. From 1968 to 2015, opposing traffic was separated by small, plastic pylons, and during that time, there were 16 fatalities resulting from 128 head - on collisions. To improve safety, the speed limit on the Golden Gate Bridge was reduced from 50 to 45 mph ( 80 to 72 km / h ) on October 1, 1983. Although there had been discussion concerning the installation of a movable barrier since the 1980s, only in March 2005 did the Bridge Board of Directors commit to finding funding to complete the $2 million study required prior to the installation of a movable median barrier. Installation of the resulting barrier was completed on January 11, 2015, following a closure of 45.5 hours to private vehicle traffic, the longest in the bridge 's history. The new barrier system, including the zipper trucks, cost approximately $30.3 million to purchase and install. Usage and tourism Play media Looking north with traffic and current flow into the bay with sailboats See also : Golden Gate National Recreation Area The bridge is popular with pedestrians and bicyclists, and was built with walkways on either side of the six vehicle traffic lanes. Initially, they were separated from the traffic lanes by only a metal curb, but railings between the walkways and the traffic lanes were added in 2003, primarily as a measure to prevent bicyclists from falling into the roadway. The main walkway is on the eastern side, and is open for use by both pedestrians and bicycles in the morning to mid-afternoon during weekdays ( 5 am to 3 : 30 pm ), and to pedestrians only for the remaining daylight hours ( until 6 pm, or 9 pm during DST ). The eastern walkway is reserved for pedestrians on weekends ( 5 am to 6 pm, or 9 pm during DST ), and is open exclusively to bicyclists in the evening and overnight, when it is closed to pedestrians. The western walkway is open only for bicyclists and only during the hours when they are not allowed on the eastern walkway. Bus service across the bridge is provided by two public transportation agencies : San Francisco Muni and Golden Gate Transit. Muni offers Saturday and Sunday service on the Marin Headlands Express bus line, and Golden Gate Transit runs numerous bus lines throughout the week. The southern end of the bridge, near the toll plaza and parking lot, is also accessible daily from 5 : 30 a.m. to midnight by Muni line 28. The Marin Airporter, a private company, also offers service across the bridge between Marin County and San Francisco International Airport. A visitor center and gift shop, dubbed the `` Bridge Pavilion '', is located on the San Francisco side of the bridge, adjacent to the southeast parking lot. It opened in 2012, in time for the bridge 's 75th anniversary celebration. A cafe, outdoor exhibits, and restroom facilities are located nearby. On the Marin side of the bridge, only accessible from the northbound lanes, is the H. Dana Bower Rest Area and Vista Point, named after the first landscape architect for the California Division of Highways. Lands and waters under and around the bridge are homes to varieties of wildlife such as bobcats and sea lions. Three species of cetaceans that had been absent in the area for many years show recent recoveries / ( re ) colonizations vicinity to the bridge, and researchers study them to strengthen protections, concerning actions by public and recommending to watch whales either from the bridge and nearby, or to use a local whale watching operator. Tolls The last of the construction bonds were retired in 1971, with $35 million in principal and nearly $39 million in interest raised entirely from bridge tolls. In November 2006, the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District recommended a corporate sponsorship program for the bridge to address its operating deficit, projected at $80 million over five years. The District promised that the proposal, which it called a `` partnership program, '' would not include changing the name of the bridge or placing advertising on the bridge itself. In October 2007, the Board unanimously voted to discontinue the proposal and seek additional revenue through other means, most likely a toll increase. In an effort to save $19.2 million over the following 10 years, the Golden Gate District voted in January 2011 to eliminate all toll takers by 2012 and use only open road tolling. Subsequently, this was delayed and toll taker elimination occurred in March 2013. The cost savings have been revised to $19 million over an eight - year period. In addition to the FasTrak electronic toll collection system, the Golden Gate District implemented the use of license plate tolling ( branded as `` Pay - by - Plate '' ), and also a one time payment system for drivers to pay before or after their trip on the bridge. Twenty - eight positions were eliminated as part of this plan. On April 7, 2014, the toll for users of FasTrak was increased from $5 to $6, while the toll for drivers using either the license plate tolling or the one time payment system was raised from $6 to $7. Bicycle, pedestrian, and northbound motor vehicle traffic remain toll free. For vehicles with more than two axles, the toll rate is $7 per axle for those using license plate tolling or the one time payment system, and $6 per axle for FasTrak users. During peak traffic hours, carpool vehicles carrying two or more people and motorcycles pay a discounted toll of $4 ; drivers must have Fastrak to take advantage of this carpool rate. The Golden Gate Transportation District then planned to increase the tolls by 25 cents in July 2015, and then by another 25 cents each of the next three years. Golden Gate Bridge toll increases ( 2014 -- 18 ) Effective date FasTrak Toll - by - plate Carpool Multi-axle vehicle April 7, 2014 $6.00 $7.00 $4.00 $7.00 per axle July 1, 2015 $6.25 $7.25 $4.25 $7.25 per axle July 1, 2016 $6.50 $7.50 $4.50 $7.50 per axle July 1, 2017 $6.75 $7.75 $4.75 $7.75 per axle July 1, 2018 $7.00 $8.00 $5.00 $8.00 per axle Congestion pricing Further information : San Francisco congestion pricing Looking south In March 2008, the Golden Gate Bridge District board approved a resolution to start congestion pricing at the Golden Gate Bridge, charging higher tolls during the peak hours, but rising and falling depending on traffic levels. This decision allowed the Bay Area to meet the federal requirement to receive $158 million in federal transportation funds from USDOT Urban Partnership grant. As a condition of the grant, the congestion toll was to be in place by September 2009. The first results of the study, called the Mobility, Access and Pricing Study ( MAPS ), showed that a congestion pricing program is feasible. The different pricing scenarios considered were presented in public meetings in December 2008. In August 2008, transportation officials ended the congestion pricing program in favor of varying rates for metered parking along the route to the bridge including on Lombard Street and Van Ness Avenue. Issues Suicides Main article : Suicides at the Golden Gate Bridge As a suicide prevention initiative, this sign promotes a special telephone available on the bridge that connects to a crisis hotline. The Golden Gate Bridge is the second-most used suicide site / suicide bridge in the world, after the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge. The deck is about 245 feet ( 75 m ) above the water. After a fall of four seconds, jumpers hit the water at around 75 mph or about 120 km / h. Most of the jumpers die from impact trauma. About 5 % of the jumpers survive the initial impact but generally drown or die of hypothermia in the cold water. After years of debate and over an estimated 1,500 deaths, suicide barriers began to be installed in April 2017. Construction will take approximately four years at a cost of over $200 million. Wind Since its completion, the Golden Gate Bridge has been closed because of weather conditions only three times : on December 1, 1951, because of gusts of 69 mph ( 111 km / h ) ; on December 23, 1982, because of winds of 70 mph ( 113 km / h ) ; and on December 3, 1983, because of wind gusts of 75 mph ( 121 km / h ). An anemometer, placed midway between the two towers on the west side of the bridge, has been used to measure wind speeds. Another anemometer was placed on one of the towers. Seismic vulnerability and Improvements South approach sub-structure with seismic isolators ( short black cylinders ) added as part of the Seismic Retrofit Construction Project. Doyle Drive Replacement Project progress in October 2013 Modern knowledge of the effect of earthquakes on structures led to a program to retrofit the Golden Gate to better resist seismic events. The proximity of the bridge to the San Andreas Fault places it at risk for a significant earthquake. Once thought to have been able to withstand any magnitude of foreseeable earthquake, the bridge was actually vulnerable to complete structural failure ( i.e., collapse ) triggered by the failure of supports on the 320 - foot ( 98 m ) arch over Fort Point. A $392 million program was initiated to improve the structure 's ability to withstand such an event with only minimal ( repairable ) damage. One challenging undertaking is completing this program without disrupting traffic. A complex electro - hydraulic synchronous lift system was custom built for construction of temporary support towers and a series of intricate lifts, transferring the loads from the existing bridge onto the temporary supports. This was completed with engineers from Balfour Beatty and Enerpac, accomplishing this task without disrupting day - to - day San Francisco commuter traffic. The retrofit was planned to be completed in 2012. The former elevated approach to the Golden Gate Bridge through the San Francisco Presidio, known as Doyle Drive, dated to 1933 and was named after Frank P. Doyle, President and son of the founder of the Exchange Bank in Santa Rosa, and the man who, more than any other person, made it possible to build the Golden Gate Bridge. The highway carried about 91,000 vehicles each weekday between downtown San Francisco and the North Bay and points north. The road was deemed `` vulnerable to earthquake damage '', had a problematic 4 - lane design, and lacked shoulders, and a San Francisco County Transportation Authority study recommended that it be replaced. Construction on the $1 billion replacement, temporarily known as the Presidio Parkway, began in December 2009. The elevated Doyle Drive was demolished on the weekend of April 27 -- 30, 2012, and traffic used a part of the partially completed Presidio Parkway, until it was switched onto the finished Presidio Parkway on the weekend of July 9 -- 12, 2015. As of May 2012, an official at Caltrans said there is no plan to permanently rename the portion known as Doyle Drive. In popular culture Main article : Golden Gate Bridge in popular culture Golden Gate Bridge at sunset As a prominent American landmark, the Golden Gate Bridge has been used in numerous media which includes books, films and video games. Comparison of the side elevations of the Golden Gate Bridge and some notable bridges at the same scale. ( click for interactive version ) San Francisco with two bridges ( Western section of Bay Bridge in the left background ), Coit Tower ( in background to the left of north tower ), and Fort Mason ( on the San Francisco waterfront in the background behind the north tower ) from Marin Golden Gate Bridge at night, with San Francisco in the background See also Bridges portal San Francisco Bay Area portal 25 de Abril Bridge, a bridge with a similar design in Portugal The Bridge, a 2006 documentary on suicides from the Bridge Golden Gate Bridge in popular culture List of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks List of longest suspension bridge spans List of San Francisco Designated Landmarks List of tallest bridges San Francisco -- Oakland Bay Bridge Suicide bridge Suspension bridge References Jump up ^ `` About Us ''. goldengate.org. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved 27 November 2017. Jump up ^ Golden Gate Bridge at Structurae ^ Jump up to : Denton, Harry et al. ( 2004 ) `` Lonely Planet San Francisco '' Lonely Planet, United States, ISBN 1 - 74104 - 154 - 6 Jump up ^ `` Annual Vehicle Crossings and Toll Revenues, FY 1938 to FY 2011 ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved December 23, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Golden Gate Bridge ''. Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved 2012 - 10 - 08. Jump up ^ `` City of San Francisco Designated Landmarks ''. City of San Francisco. Retrieved October 21, 2012. Jump up ^ `` American Society of Civil Engineers Seven Wonders ''. Asce.org. July 19, 2010. Archived from the original on August 2, 2010. Retrieved August 30, 2010. Jump up ^ Levine, Dan ( 1993 ). Frommer 's comprehensive travel guide, California ' 93. New York : Prentice Hall Travel. p. 118. ISBN 0671846744. Jump up ^ McGrath, Nancy ( 1985 ). Frommer 's 1985 - 86 guide to San Francisco. New York : Frommer / Pasmantier Pub. p. 10. ISBN 0671526545. ^ Jump up to : `` Two Bay Area Bridges ''. US Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved March 9, 2009. Jump up ^ Fimrite, Peter ( April 28, 2005 ). `` Ferry tale -- the dream dies hard : 2 historic boats that plied the bay seek buyer -- anybody ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved October 31, 2007. Jump up ^ Harlan, George H. ( 1967 ). San Francisco Bay Ferryboats. Howell - North Books. ^ Jump up to : Span, Guy ( May 4, 2002 ). `` So Where Are They Now ? The Story of San Francisco 's Steel Electric Empire ''. Bay Crossings. ^ Jump up to : Sigmund, Pete ( 2006 ). `` The Golden Gate : ' The Bridge That Could n't Be Built ', ''. Construction Equipment Guide. Retrieved May 31, 2007. Jump up ^ Barnard, Hanes, Rubin, Kvitek ( July 18, 2006 ). `` Giant Sand Waves at the Mouth of San Francisco Bay '' ( PDF ). Eos. 87 ( 29 ). CS1 maint : Uses authors parameter ( link ) ^ Jump up to : Owens, T.O. ( 2001 ). The Golden Gate Bridge. The Rosen Publishing Group. ISBN 0 - 8239 - 5016 - 6. ^ Jump up to : `` The American Experience : People & Events : Joseph Strauss ( 1870 -- 1938 ) ''. Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved November 7, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Bridging the Bay : Bridges That Never Were ''. UC Berkeley Library. 1999. Archived from the original on July 18, 2006. Retrieved April 13, 2006. Jump up ^ Miller, John B. ( 2002 ) `` Case Studies in Infrastructure Delivery '' Springer, ISBN 0 - 7923 - 7652 - 8. Jump up ^ Gudde, Erwin G. ( 1949 ). California Place Names. Berkeley, California : University of California Press. p. 130. OCLC 37647557. Jump up ^ `` Special District Formed -- Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District ''. Retrieved January 17, 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` People and Events : Joseph Strauss ( 1870 -- 1938 ) ''. Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved December 12, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Golden Gate Bridge Design ''. goldengatebridge.org. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved 27 November 2017. Jump up ^ `` The American Experience : People & Events : Irving Morrow ( 1884 -- 1952 ) ''. Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved November 7, 2007. ^ Jump up to : `` American Experience : Leon Moisseiff ( 1872 -- 1943 ) ''. Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved November 7, 2007. Jump up ^ Billah, K. ; Scanlan, R. ( 1991 ). `` Resonance, Tacoma Narrows Bridge Failure '' ( PDF ). American Journal of Physics. Undergraduate Physics Textbooks. 59 ( 2 ) : 118 -- 124. doi : 10.1119 / 1.16590. Jump up ^ Fort Point, Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. ^ Jump up to : `` The American Experience : Charles Alton Ellis ( 1876 -- 1949 ) ''. Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved November 7, 2007. Jump up ^ Jackson, Donald C. ( 1995 ) `` Great American Bridges and Dams '' John Wiley and Sons, ISBN 0 - 471 - 14385 - 5 Jump up ^ `` Bridging the Bay : Bridges That Never Were ''. UC Berkeley Library. Retrieved February 19, 2007. Jump up ^ Thomas, Ryland ; Williamson, Samuel H. ( 2018 ). `` What Was the U.S. GDP Then ? ''. MeasuringWorth. Retrieved January 5, 2018. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the Measuring Worth series. Jump up ^ `` 72 years ago today, iconic Golden Gate Bridge finished construction ahead of schedule & $1.3 million under budget ''. May 27, 2009. Retrieved April 10, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Life On The American Newsfront : Ten Men Fall To Death From Golden Gate Bridge ''. Life : 20 -- 21. March 1, 1937. Jump up ^ `` Frequently Asked Questions about the Golden Gate Bridge ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved November 7, 2007. ^ Jump up to : King, John ( May 25, 2012 ). `` Golden Gate Bridge 's Plaza Flawed but Workable ''. San Francisco Chronicle. ^ Jump up to : Kligman, David ( May 25, 2012 ). `` From Sea to Shining Sea : PG&E 's Earley Joins Tribute to Golden Gate Bridge ''. Currents. PG&E. Jump up ^ San Francisco Examiner. May 27, 1982. No. 147, p. 2. Golden Gate Bridge -- 45th anniversary of completion. Jump up ^ Tung, Stephen ( May 23, 2012 ). `` The Day the Golden Gate Bridge Flattened ''. San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved January 17, 2016. Jump up ^ Pollalis, Spiro N. ; Otto, Caroline ( 1990 ). `` THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE '' ( PDF ). Harvard Design School. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on October 11, 2011. Retrieved April 3, 2011. Jump up ^ McCarthy, Terrence ( May 26, 1987 ). `` Golden Gate Crowd Made Bridge Bend ''. The New York Times. Retrieved April 3, 2011. Jump up ^ Prado, Mark ( July 23, 2010 ). `` Golden Gate Bridge officials nix walk for 75th anniversary ''. Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved April 3, 2011. Jump up ^ `` Golden Gate Festival : : Golden Gate Bridge 75th Anniversary ''. Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. Retrieved March 21, 2012. Jump up ^ Fowler, Geoffrey A. ( May 24, 2012 ). `` A Historian 's Long View of Golden Gate Bridge ''. The Wall Street Journal. pp. A13C. Retrieved August 31, 2013. ^ Jump up to : `` Bridge Design and Construction Statistics ''. goldengatebridge.org. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved 27 November 2017. ^ Jump up to : `` Golden Gate Bridge : Construction Data ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved August 20, 2007. Jump up ^ Stamberg, Susan. `` The Golden Gate Bridge 's Accidental Color ''. NPR. Retrieved April 27, 2011. Jump up ^ Rodriguez, Joseph A. ; Urban Rivalry in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1930s ( 2000 ). `` Planning ''. Journal of Planning Education and Research. 20 : 66 -- 76. doi : 10.1177 / 073945600128992609. ^ Jump up to : `` Frequently Asked Questions about the Golden Gate Bridge ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved March 12, 2008. Jump up ^ `` Golden Gate Bridge : Construction Data : How Many Ironworkers and Painters Maintain the Golden Gate Bridge ? ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. 2006. Retrieved April 13, 2006. Jump up ^ `` Toll Rates & Traffic Operations ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved December 3, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Roadway Configuration / Reversible Lanes ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved December 23, 2012. ^ Jump up to : `` Additional Information -- Movable Median Barrier Project ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved September 29, 2014. ^ Jump up to : `` Key Dates ''. Research Library. Retrieved December 11, 2007. Jump up ^ Asimov, Nanette ( January 11, 2015 ). `` Golden Gate Bridge work finished early as barrier is installed ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Hearst Newspapers. Retrieved January 11, 2015. Jump up ^ Lucas, Scott ( July 18, 2013 ). `` Kevin Hines Is Still Alive ''. Modern Luxury. Retrieved July 18, 2013. Jump up ^ The Golden Gate Bridge, Sidewalk Access for Pedestrians and Bicyclists. Goldengatebridge.org. Retrieved June 14, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Muni Route 76X Marin Headlands ''. San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. Retrieved July 2, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Golden Gate Transit bus service '' ( PDF ). Golden Gate Transit. Retrieved August 19, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Muni Route 28 19th Avenue ''. San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. Retrieved August 19, 2012. Jump up ^ http://www.marinairporter.com/ Jump up ^ `` Site Improvements ''. Golden Gate Bridge 75th Anniversary. Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved January 12, 2015. Jump up ^ `` H. Dana Bowers Rest Area ''. California Department of Transportation. Retrieved June 2, 2016. Jump up ^ 2015 Named Freeways, Highways, Structures and Other Appurtenances in California ( PDF ). California Department of Transportation. pp. 183, 205. Retrieved June 2, 2016. Jump up ^ Animals -- Golden Gate National Recreation Area ( U.S. National Park Service ). Retrieved on July 30, 2017 Jump up ^ The SFGate. 2015. Whale, sea lions put on a show near Golden Gate Bridge. Retrieved on July 30, 2017 Jump up ^ GOLDEN GATE CETACEAN RESEARCH. Retrieved on July 30, 2017 Jump up ^ Keener B... 2017. Ask The Naturalist : Why Are There Humpback Whales In the San Francisco Bay Right Now ?. Retrieved on July 30, 2017 Jump up ^ Woodrow M... 2017. Experts concerned about whale safety in San Francisco Bay. The ABC7. Retrieved on July 30, 2017 Jump up ^ Curiel, Jonathan ( October 27, 2007 ). `` Golden Gate Bridge directors reject sponsorship proposals ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved October 27, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Partnership Program Status ''. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved October 27, 2007. Jump up ^ Cabanatuan, Michael ( January 29, 2011 ). `` Golden Gate Bridge to eliminate toll takers ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved January 30, 2011. ^ Jump up to : `` Toll 2014 ''. Goldengate.org. April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 26, 2014. ^ Jump up to : Cabanatuan, Michael ( April 7, 2014 ). `` Tolls for crossing Golden Gate Bridge rise $1 ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 26, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Summary of Recommendations, February 27, 2014 '' ( PDF ). Board of Directors. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. pp. 5 -- 6. Retrieved May 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Bolling, David ( May 29, 2008 ). `` GG Bridge tolls could top $7, June 11 meeting will set new rates ''. Sonoma Index - Tribune. Jump up ^ The San Francisco Chronicle ( March 19, 2008 ). `` Congestion Pricing Approved for Golden Gate Bridge ''. planetizen.com. Retrieved April 3, 2008. Jump up ^ Cabanatuan, Michael ( March 15, 2008 ). `` Bridge raises tolls, denies Doyle Dr. funds ''. The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 3, 2008. Jump up ^ `` Mobility, Access and Pricing Study ''. San Francisco County Transportation Authority. Retrieved February 22, 2009. Jump up ^ Wollan, Malia ( January 4, 2009 ). `` San Francisco Studies Fees to Ease Traffic ''. The New York Times. Retrieved February 22, 2009. Jump up ^ Cabanatuan, Michael ( August 12, 2008 ). `` Golden Gate Bridge congestion toll plan dies ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Jump up ^ Bone, James ( October 13, 2008 ). `` Golden Gate bridge in San Fransico ( sic ) gets safety net to deter suicides ''. The Times. New York. Retrieved October 23, 2008. Jump up ^ `` Suspension Bridges '' ( PDF ). snu.ac.kr. p. 5. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on July 12, 2003. Jump up ^ Koopman, John, Staff Writer ( November 2, 2005 ). `` LETHAL BEAUTY / No easy death : Suicide by bridge is gruesome, and death is almost certain. The fourth in a seven - part series on the Golden Gate Bridge barrier debate ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 3, 2014. Jump up ^ Bateson, John ( September 29, 2013 ). `` The suicide magnet that is the Golden Gate Bridge ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 14, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Suicide Barriers Going Up At Golden Gate Bridge After Over 1.5 K Deaths ''. CBS San Francisco. CBS Broadcasting Inc. 13 April 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017. Jump up ^ Nolte, Carl ( May 28, 2007 ). `` 70 YEARS : Spanning the Golden Gate : New will blend in with the old as part of bridge earthquake retrofit project ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Jump up ^ Showing fancy foot work. Roads&Bridges ( December 28, 2000 ). ^ Jump up to : Golden Gate Bridge Authority ( May 2008 ). `` Overview of Golden Gate Bridge Seismic Retrofit ''. Retrieved June 21, 2008. Jump up ^ Gonchar, Joann ( January 3, 2005 ). `` Famed Golden Gate Span Undergoes Complex Seismic Revamp ''. McGraw - Hill Construction. Retrieved June 21, 2008. Jump up ^ `` Presidio Parkway re-envisioning Doyle Drive ''. Presidio Parkway Project. Retrieved May 6, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Doyle Drive Replacement Project ''. Doyle Drive Replacement Project. San Francisco County Transportation Authority. Retrieved May 6, 2010. Jump up ^ Cabanatuan, Michael ( January 5, 2010 ). `` Doyle Drive makeover will affect drivers soon ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved May 6, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Current Construction Activity ''. Presidio Parkway re-envisioning Doyle Drive. Presidio Parkway. Retrieved May 6, 2010. Jump up ^ `` SMITH : It 's wrecked, but it 's still ' Doyle Drive ' ''. Press Democrat. Retrieved May 1, 2012. Further reading Cassady, Stephen ( 1979 ). Spanning the Gate ( Commemorative edition, 1987 ed. ). Squarebooks. Dyble, Louise Nelson ; the Golden Gate Bridge ( 2009 ). Paying the Toll : Local Power, Regional Politics. University of Pennsylvania Press. Friend, Tad ( October 13, 2003 ). `` Jumpers : The fatal grandeur of the Golden Gate Bridge ''. The New Yorker. 79 ( 30 ). p. 48. Archived from the original on November 8, 2006. Guthman, Edward ; an easy route to death have long made the Golden Gate Bridge a magnet for suicides ( October 30, 2005 ). `` Lethal Beauty / The Allure : Beauty ''. San Francisco Chronicle. Schwartz, Harvey ( 2015 ). Building the Golden Gate Bridge : A Workers ' Oral History. University of Washington Press. ISBN 978 - 0295995069. Starr, Kevin ( 2010 ). Golden Gate : The Life and Times of America 's Greatest Bridge. Bloomsbury Press. ISBN 978 - 1 - 59691 - 534 - 3. Steel, Eric ( 2006 ). The Bridge. ( Documentary film regarding suicides occurring at the Golden Gate Bridge. ) `` Golden Gate Bridge Natural Frequencies ''. Vibrationdata.com. April 5, 2006. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to : Golden Gate Bridge ( category ) Official website Historic American Engineering Record ( HAER ) No. CA - 31, `` Golden Gate Bridge '', 41 photos, 6 color transparencies, 2 data pages, 4 photo caption pages Links for Golden Gate Bridge at Curlie ( based on DMOZ ) `` Images of the Golden Gate Bridge ''. San Francisco Public Library 's Historical Photograph database. Marshal ' J ' ( Narrator ) ( 1962 ). `` The Bridge Builders ''. KPIX - TV. ( A documentary film about the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge. ) `` Live Toll Prices for Golden Gate Bridge ''. Batolls.info. `` San Francisco To Have World 's Greatest Bridge ''. Popular Science. March 1931. `` Golden Gate Bridge facts ''. sftodo.com. ( Educational poster. ) `` End of Land Sadness -- The history of Suicide and the Golden Gate Bridge ''. Golden Gate Bridge Movie. Crossings of the San Francisco Bay West Pacific Ocean Golden Gate Bridge East North Bay : Richmond - San Rafael Bridge South Bay : Transbay Tube BART World 's longest suspension bridge span Preceded by George Washington Bridge Golden Gate Bridge 1937 -- 1964 Superseded by Verrazano -- Narrows Bridge San Francisco attractions Landmarks 49 - Mile Drive Alcatraz Bay Bridge Cable Cars The Castro Chinatown City Hall Cliff House Coit Tower F - Market Streetcar Fairmont Hotel Federal Reserve Bank Ferry Building Fisherman 's Wharf Fort Mason Fort Point Ghirardelli Square Golden Gate Bridge Grace Cathedral Haight - Ashbury Jack Kerouac Alley Lombard Street Mark Hopkins Hotel Market Street Mission Dolores Nob Hill North Beach Old U.S. Mint Painted ladies Palace of Fine Arts Pier 39 Public Library Sutro Baths Sutro Tower Transamerica Pyramid Treasure Island Union Square Museums and art Asian Art Museum Aquarium of the Bay Cable Car Museum California Academy of Sciences Cartoon Art Museum Children 's Creativity Museum Chinese Historical Society Museum Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum The Walt Disney Family Museum de Young Museum Exploratorium Haas - Lilienthal House Legion of Honor Musée Mécanique Museo ItaloAmericano Museum of Performance & Design Museum of the African Diaspora Precita Eyes Randall Museum Ripley 's Believe It or Not ! San Francisco Art Institute Diego Rivera Gallery San Francisco Museum of Modern Art San Francisco Maritime Railway Museum USS Pampanito Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts Parks and recreation Alamo Square Bay Area Ridge Trail Candlestick Point Corona Heights Crissy Field Dolores Park Glen Canyon Golden Gate National Recreation Area Golden Gate Park Lafayette Park Lake Merced Marina Green McLaren Park Mount Davidson Mount Sutro Ocean Beach The Presidio San Francisco Bay Trail San Francisco Zoo Stern Grove Twin Peaks Yerba Buena Gardens Views Coit Tower Twin Peaks Seal Rocks / Ocean Beach Baker Beach Golden Gate Bridge Fort Funston Hamon Observation Tower at the de Young Museum Strawberry Hill Crissy Field Pacific Heights Alamo Square / Painted Ladies Top of the Mark Alcatraz Treasure Island Lombard Street Powell - Hyde Cable Car Ferry Building Bernal Hill 49 - Mile Scenic Drive Hawk Hill Fort Baker Entertainment American Conservatory Theater Bill Graham Civic Auditorium Cow Palace The Fillmore War Memorial and Performing Arts Center Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Sports San Francisco Giants AT&T Park Candlestick Park Kezar Stadium Food and drink Anchor Steam Boudin Bakery Buena Vista Cafe Cioppino Dungeness crab Ghirardelli Square Mission burrito Tadich Grill Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar Top of the Mark Shopping Metreon Stonestown Galleria Union Square Westfield San Francisco Centre National Register of Historic Places listings in San Francisco San Francisco Bay watershed Outline Hydrography Ecology List of tributaries List of lakes Subdivisions Major San Francisco Bay Suisun Bay San Pablo Bay Minor Golden Gate Grizzly Bay Richardson Bay San Rafael Bay Richmond Inner Harbor San Leandro Bay Former Yerba Buena Cove Mission Bay Waterways Rivers San Joaquin Sacramento Napa Guadalupe Petaluma Creeks ( discharging into the Bay ) Alameda Baxter Cerrito Codornices Coyote ( Santa Clara ) Coyote ( Marin ) San Leandro San Lorenzo Schoolhouse Temescal Sausal Redwood San Mateo Sonoma Corte Madera Arroyo Corte Madera del Presidio San Rafael Miller Novato Tolay San Francisquito Pacheco Alhambra Adobe Rodeo Refugio Pinole Garrity Rheem Karlson San Pablo Castro Wildcat Fluvius Innominatus Marin ( Alameda County ) Strawberry Easton Mission Creek Reservoirs Calaveras Reservoir Lafayette Reservoir Straits and estuaries Sacramento -- San Joaquin River Delta Carquinez Strait Oakland Estuary Raccoon Strait Parks and protected areas Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge Eden Landing Ecological Reserve Hayward Regional Shoreline Hayward Shoreline Interpretive Center Crown Memorial State Beach Eastshore State Park Emeryville Crescent State Marine Reserve Point Isabel Regional Shoreline César Chávez Park Brooks Island Regional Shoreline Point Pinole Regional Shoreline Antioch Dunes National Wildlife Refuge Coyote Point Park Middle Harbor Shoreline Park National Estuarine Research Reserve China Camp State Park San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park SF Bay Trail Oyster Bay Regional Shoreline Big Break Regional Shoreline Islands and peninsulas Major islands Alameda Alcatraz Angel Treasure Island Yerba Buena Minor Brooks Bair Bay Farm Belvedere Brother Castro Rocks Coast Guard Greco Mare Red Rock The Sisters Marin Islands Roe Ryer Seal Islands Peninsulas / infill Albany Bulb Point Isabel Foster City Fleming Point Hunters Point Steamboat Point Potrero Point Wetlands Chelsea Cordelia Crissy Field Hoffman Meeker Mowry Napa Sonoma Point Molate Seal Stege Suisun Westpoint Bridges and tubes Bridges San Francisco -- Oakland Eastern span replacement Richmond -- San Rafael San Mateo -- Hayward Dumbarton Golden Gate Benicia -- Martinez Antioch Carquinez Leimert Park Street Fruitvale High Street Bay Farm Island Tubes Posey / Webster Street Transbay Ports and marinas Port of San Francisco Port of Oakland Port of Richmond San Francisco Naval Shipyard Mare Island Naval Shipyard Port of Redwood City Berkeley Marina Oyster Point Marina / Park Clipper Yacht Harbor Westpoint Harbor Foster City Marina ( proposed ) Other Discovery Site Humphrey the Whale Cosco Busan oil spill Delta and Dawn Golden Gate Biosphere Reserve California clapper rail Reber Plan San Leandro Oyster Beds Thicktail chub Delta smelt Richmond Shipyards U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Bay Model Guadalupe Watershed Clifton Court Forebay Conservation and Development Commission The Watershed Project Save The Bay Harold Gilliam Marincello Citizens for East Shore Parks Friends of Five Creeks Urban Creeks Council Cargill salt infill Ferry service / SF Bay Ferry 1971 oil spill Greenbelt Alliance The Bay Institute San Francisco Baykeeper San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science Water Trail Estuary Partnership Leslie Salt Portal VIAF : 235599832 GND : 4271721 - 8 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Golden_Gate_Bridge&oldid=836017258 '' Categories : Golden Gate Bridge 1937 establishments in California Art Deco architecture in California Bridges by Joseph Strauss Bridges completed in 1937 Bridges in San Francisco Bridges in Marin County, California Bridges on the United States Numbered Highways California Historical Landmarks California State Route 1 Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District Historic American Engineering Record in California Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks Landmarks in San Francisco Landmarks in the San Francisco Bay Area Pedestrian bridges in California Road bridges in California Roads with a reversible lane San Francisco Designated Landmarks Suspension bridges in California Symbols of California Toll bridges in California U.S. Route 101 Tourist attractions in Marin County, California Works Progress Administration in California Open - spandrel deck arch bridges in the United States Steel bridges in the United States Truss arch bridges in the United States Hidden categories : Structurae ID different from Wikidata CS1 maint : Uses authors parameter All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from May 2016 Wikipedia pages semi-protected against vandalism Use mdy dates from July 2016 Coordinates on Wikidata Articles which use infobox templates with no data rows Articles using Template : Infobox bridge with clearance Pages using Infobox bridge with extra All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from October 2007 Articles with unsourced statements from November 2017 Articles with Curlie links Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Articles containing video clips Talk Views View source Contents About Wikipedia Wikimedia Commons Afrikaans Ænglisc Aragonés Asturianu Azərbaycanca বাংলা Башҡортса Беларуская Беларуская ( тарашкевіца ) ‎ Bikol Central Български Bosanski Català Čeština Cymraeg Dansk Deutsch ދިވެހިބަސް Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Føroyskt Français Frysk Gaeilge Galego ગુજરાતી 한국어 Հայերեն हिन्दी Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska Italiano עברית ಕನ್ನಡ ქართული Қазақша Kernowek Kiswahili ລາວ Latina Latviešu Lëtzebuergesch Lietuvių Magyar Македонски മലയാളം मराठी Bahasa Melayu မြန်မာဘာသာ Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk ਪੰਜਾਬੀ پنجابی Papiamentu Polski Português Română Русский Scots Shqip සිංහල Simple English Slovenčina Slovenščina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska தமிழ் తెలుగు ไทย Türkçe Українська اردو Vepsän kel ' Tiếng Việt Winaray 吴语 粵語 Zazaki 中文 Kabɩyɛ 81 more Edit links This page was last edited on 12 April 2018, at 05 : 07. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: why is the golden bridge called the golden bridge
Answer: spanning the Golden Gate, the one-mile-wide (1.6 km) strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean