On May 24, 1987, San Francisco held a bridge walk to commemorate the Golden Gate Bridge's 50th anniversary. With an estimated 300,000 people jammed like sardines onto the bridge, it began to creak and shake. Under the tremendous weight, the centre of the bridge dropped seven feet, forcing the famous arch to flatten. The panic that followed as thousands of people feared the structure was about to collapse was one of the most intense I have ever seen. Within minutes, emergency vehicles were swamped with calls from terrified citizens. Drivers pulled off the road to report that their cars were rocking back and forth, that the brakes didn't work. Some people jumped off the bridge into the icy waters of San Francisco Bay.
The damage was not enough to bring the structure down, but it did cause the city to build its own replacement bridge three years later.
1. The bridge was destroyed by an earthquake before it was even finished. In April 1935, the Golden Gate Bridge was under construction in San Francisco, California. An earthquake rocked the region in June 1935, when workers were working atop the bridge's unfinished south tower. The earthquake killed 77 people and injured another 612.
After this tragedy, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to cancel the contract with John Armani and replace him with Edward Bennett Jr. as the new chief architect. The board also decided that instead of building a bridge that would be ready for traffic in less than a year, they would wait until there was more research into earthquake safety.
In addition, the board wanted to change the design of the bridge to make it stronger and more resistant to damage caused by vehicles driving off of it. They commissioned a study of how other long-span bridges around the world had withstood major earthquakes over the last 10 years and found that none of them were able to withstand more than 7 percent of their original weight on them. Since the maximum capacity of the bridge was expected to be about 10 times that number, this meant that it needed to be made out of steel that could resist forces up to 70,000 pounds (32,707 kg) per square foot (0.33 m).
Atop the bridge that connects San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean The Golden Gate Bridge is a worldwide recognized symbol of San Francisco and California. It is an engineering marvel, built in four years thanks to remarkable human vision, perseverance, and technological competence.
The Golden Gate Bridge is composed of three separate bridges joined by continuous sidewalks. Each section of the bridge is independently strong enough to support its own weight as well as that of all traffic crossing it. This unique design allows for major repairs or replacements to be done on one section of the bridge without affecting the other two.
The bridge's construction was made possible by the use of innovative new materials and designs that were not available at the time. For example, the main cables of the bridge are made of stainless steel instead of iron or steel because researchers believed that this material would be less likely to rust.
Another example is the fact that the base of each tower is hollow so that cable cars can move up and down them. The bridge's designers also took advantage of its location near the mouth of the bay where the water is quite deep (up to 100 feet), which allowed for its size to be reduced significantly compared with other bridges at the time.
The Golden Gate Bridge's construction began on January 5, 1933, and was completed on April 19, 1937. The Golden Gate Bridge's construction began in 1933, with the Pylon S-1, Old Fort Point, and the North and South Towers in San Francisco. By 1935, the main part of the bridge was complete, except for the approaches and service roads. Work continued on the bridge after it opened to repair damage caused by its opening ceremony and natural disasters until it was officially declared open by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on May 30, 1937.
Although the Golden Gate Bridge is the world's most popular bridge experience, it has its drawbacks. Driving over the bridge is difficult because there are no shoulder lanes or parking lots, just two narrow traffic lanes separated by a barrier divider. There is also no escape route if something goes wrong during driving - the only option is to stop driving and wait for help to arrive.
In addition, the bridge is known for its tolls. Drivers need to pay $5 for a car license plate that is valid for up to four years or purchase a transponder for $10 per month. If you don't have enough cash or credit cards, there are still ways to pay for your license plate. For example, many agencies will issue temporary plates for free if you can provide proof of identity and residence.
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