Facts about Bridge
- 10
Approximately 27 workers died during the Golden Gate Bridge's 1935-1937 construction, a remarkably low fatality rate achieved through the use of an innovative safety net strung beneath the work area.
- 09
Retrofitting the Golden Gate Bridge with seismic dampers between 2001 and 2013 cost $1.3 billion to protect it from earthquakes exceeding magnitude 7.9 on the San Andreas Fault.
- 08
Over 5 million rivets hold together the Golden Gate Bridge's steel structure, with workers hand-driving each rivet during the 1935-1937 construction period.
- 07
Each of the Golden Gate Bridge's two main cables weighs approximately 7,250 tons and measures 36.5 inches in diameter, making them thicker than any other suspension bridge cables built before 1937.
- 06
Pedestrians and cyclists traversing the Golden Gate Bridge experience wind speeds regularly exceeding 50 miles per hour due to its exposed position between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay.
- 05
During its construction in 1935, the Golden Gate Bridge's main cable was spun in place using a revolutionary technique that had never been attempted before on a suspension bridge of that magnitude.
- 04
Approximately 200,000 vehicles cross the Golden Gate Bridge daily, generating enough toll revenue to fund its $76 million annual operating and maintenance budget without state funding.
- 03
Golden Gate Bridge's two main towers stand 746 feet above water, making them 11 feet taller than the Brooklyn Bridge's towers to account for the bay's deeper navigation channels.
- 02
In 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge's main suspension cables contained 27,572 individual steel wires twisted together, totaling 80,000 miles of wire length.
- 01
The Golden Gate Bridge's International Orange color requires repainting every 7 years due to salt spray corrosion in the San Francisco Bay.