Golden Gate Bridge in SF

The Iconic Golden Gate Bridge is the most photographed bridge on earth. Regarded as ‘one of the wonders of the modern world’, the bridge is just so beautiful to watch.

History of the Golden Gate Bridge

The suspension bridge is over a mile long, spanning over 4,200q feet long (1,280m). It spans across the San Francisco Bay, connecting the northern and southern side.

It was officially opened for public use in 1937, to ease movement from San Francisco to other parts of Marin County. The construction of the bridge cost about $35 billion and it weighs 875,400 tons. Today, over 2 billion vehicles have traveled over the bridge.

Up until 1964, the Golden Gate Bridge was the longest bridge in the world. The record is now held by the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge in Japan. The color of the bridge, orange, is referred to as international orange. It was chosen to compliment its natural environment and make it more visible, especially in fog.

The golden gate bridge features walkways on both sides for pedestrians and cyclists. The main walkway is referred to as the eastern side. It is usually open from morning up until 3 pm for both cyclists and pedestrians. From 3 pm till 5 pm, it is only open to cyclists, or on some occasions until 9 pm.

The walkway on the west is only open to foot cyclists during the hours when they are not allowed to pass through the main sidewalk.

Cost of toll

While the bridge is free for both pedestrians and cyclists to use, vehicles are required to pay a fee for the use of the bridge. They are required to pay about $8 for their travel across the bridge and are charged per-plate-number.

In the Movies

Due to the popularity of the San Francisco Bridge, it has appeared in several movies, including block busters such as Superman: The Movie, San Andreas (2015), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) and several other movies.

After you’ve visted the bridge, check out this great park, not far from the bridge. You could spend a whole day here at the golf course if you wanted to.