The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the opening into the San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. It connects the city of San Francisco on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula and a portion of the south-facing Marin County headlands near the small bayside town of Sausalito. The entire bridge including the approach spans is 1.7 miles (2,727 m) long, the distance between the towers ("main span") is 4200 feet (1280 m), and their height is 746 feet (230 m) above the water.
The construction of the bridge began on January 5, 1933. The bridge was completed in April 1937 and opened to pedestrians on May 27 of that year. The next day, President Roosevelt pushed a button in Washington, DC signaling the start of vehicle traffic over the Bridge. The cost to build it was $35 million in principal and $39 million in interest. A unique aspect of the construction of this bridge was that a safety net was set up beneath it, significantly reducing the number of deaths that were typical for a construction project such as this in the early 1900s. 11 men were killed from falls during construction, and approximately 19 men were saved by the safety net. 10 of the deaths occurred near completion when the net itself failed under the stress of a scaffold fall. The 19 workers whose lives were saved by the safety nets became proud members of the (informal) Halfway to Hell Club.
In each of the last five years, on average, there is one jump every two weeks, with a total of over 1,300 suicides (the official count ended in 1995 when the number approached 1,000).People jump from the east sidewalk as it is open to pedestrians and bicycles. The western sidewalk is reserved for bridge workers during the weekdays, and bicyclists on weekends. The 220-foot (67 m) fall takes four seconds and jumpers hit the water at 75 miles per hour (120 km/h). As of 2003, only 26 people have survived the jump. The survivors, many of whom report that they regretted the decision in mid-air, all struck the water feet first at a small angle and suffered multiple internal injuries and broken bones.
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