Here are 19 interesting Golden Gate Bridge facts.
1-5 Golden Gate Bridge Facts
1. The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco was not originally going to be painted orange. The orange color was only supposed to be for a sealant and was to be painted with black and yellow stripes to ensure visibility by passing ships. The orange color worked better for fog so it was kept instead. – Source
2. People who survived suicide attempts by jumping off the Golden Gate bridge often regret their decision in midair, if not before. Said one survivor: “I instantly realized that everything in my life that I had thought was unfixable was totally fixable—except for having just jumped.” – Source
3. A San Francisco teen survived a 220ft plunge off the Golden Gate bridge while on a class field trip with no major injuries. When asked why he did it he said, “for kicks”. – Source
4. When building the Golden Gate Bridge, the lead structural engineer insisted on the installation of a safety net even though its $130,000 cost was deemed exorbitant. Over the four years of its construction, the net saved 19 men, who named themselves the “Halfway to Hell Club.” – Source
5. There’s a zipper truck on the Golden Gate Bridge that shifts the median from one lane to another to increase traffic flow in either direction. – Source
6-10 Golden Gate Bridge Facts
6. The Golden Gate Bridge isn’t named for its own coloring but rather for the mouth of the San Francisco Bay, which was named so even before the California gold rush. – Source
7. The last rivet in the Golden Gate Bridge is solid gold. During installation at the dedication ceremony, it shattered, because rivet guns are supposed to work with steel rivets, not soft gold. – Source
8. The Golden Gate Bridge is designed to sway up to 28 feet sideways and 16 feet vertically. – Source
9. In 1987, when 300,000 people started crossing the Golden Gate Bridge on foot during the bridge’s 50th-anniversary walk, the stress on the bridge stretched the steel cables, pulled the towers inward and pushed the roadway down by 7 feet. – Source
10. The Golden Gate Bridge was built for only $35 million and finished more than a million dollars under budget. – Source
11-15 Golden Gate Bridge Facts
11. The Golden Gate Bridge is about 60 times heavier than the Brooklyn Bridge. – Source
12. 4 days after his father jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge, a UCLA pre-med student drove the same car that his father had driven to the bridge and also committed suicide leaving a short note that said ””I am sorry. . . . I want to keep dad company.” – Source
13. By 2018 the golden gate bridge will have anti-suicide features. – Source
14. The Cisco logo is the Golden Gate Bridge, the company was named after San Francisco while the founders were on their way to register the company and saw the bridge. – Source
15. The roadway across the Golden Gate Bridge rises and falls as much as 16 feet depending on the temperature. – Source
16-19 Golden Gate Bridge Facts
16. A study titled “Where Are They Now?” in 1978 followed up on 515 people who were prevented from attempting suicide using the Golden Gate Bridge from 1937 to 1971. About 90% were either alive or had died of natural causes, concluding “suicidal behavior is crisis-oriented” rather than inexorable. – Source
17. Before the Golden Gate Bridge toll collection system switched to fully automatic in 2013, the average salary of a toll taker was over $27 per hour. The switch is expected to save 16 million dollars over eight years. – Source
18. The top of the Golden Gate Bridge is almost two inches wider than the base because of the curvature of the Earth. – Source
19. In 1996, American actor Woody Harrelson climbed the Golden Gate Bridge which resulted in all-day traffic. – Source
