Golden Gate Bridge, Suspension bridge over the Golden Gate strait, San Francisco, United States
The Golden Gate Bridge is a steel suspension bridge that runs 8980 feet (2737 meters) through the bay between the peninsula and the northern shore. Two orange towers rise 746 feet (227 meters) above the water, held at both ends by massive anchorage blocks.
The bridge opened on May 27, 1937, after the Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District was created in 1923 and Joseph Strauss was named chief engineer. The project was financed solely by $35 million in bonds, repaid from tolls with the last bond redeemed in 1971. Irving Morrow gave the steel towers their stepped Art Deco form.
The name was first used in 1917 by city engineer M.M. O'Shaughnessy and Joseph Strauss, and made official by the 1923 Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District Act. The bridge carries six road lanes plus pedestrian and bicycle paths, and is part of U.S. Bicycle Route 95.
The bridge carries six road lanes plus a pedestrian path and a bicycle path; the eastern walkway is open during daylight, and cyclists use the western path on a set schedule. Tolls are collected electronically, southbound only, and parking at both ends is limited. The deck clears high tide by 67 metres, so ships pass beneath.
The International Orange color was chosen to improve visibility through heavy fog while preventing corrosion from salty sea air. Paint crews maintain this protective layer continuously throughout the year.
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