Golden Gate Bridge suicide barrier closes in on approval

A rendering shows how the proposed suicide barrier, a net 20 feet beneath the east side of the span, would look. A net would also be placed under the bridge's western, ocean-facing side. A rendering shows how the proposed suicide barrier, a net 20 feet beneath the east side of the span, would look. A net would also be placed under the bridge's western, ocean-facing side. Photo: Golden Gate Bridge District, Courtesy To The Chronicle Photo: Golden Gate Bridge District, Courtesy To The Chronicle Image 1 of / 10 Caption Close Golden Gate Bridge suicide barrier closes in on approval 1 / 10 Back to Gallery

Golden Gate Bridge directors, in an effort to end the world-famous span's allure as a suicide destination, are expected Friday to approve spending $20 million to hang a net beneath the landmark structure.

It's part of a $76 million funding plan for what the district calls "a physical suicide deterrent system" that also includes money from the state and federal governments.

Bridge officials, who had vowed not to spend toll money on the steel-cable net, are nonetheless expected to vote for contributing $20 million in reserves and approving the funding package. Their action would allow the district to proceed with building and installing the net on both sides of the bridge, a project expected to take about three years.

It's been 77 years since the bridge opened, and during that time an estimated 1,600 people have jumped to their deaths. Last year, 46 people committed suicide at the bridge, and 100 were stopped by bridge workers or police.

"By approving this, we are putting a stop to 77 years of needless death and family devastation," Kevin Hines said at the bridge Thursday. Hines survived a suicide attempt at the bridge in 2001 at age 19 and has since worked to get a barrier installed.

There have been intermittent calls for some kind of suicide barrier for decades, usually from mental health agencies and the families of jumpers. In 1954, the first plan suggested installation of a barbed-wire fence along the bridge's rails. In recent years, support for a suicide barrier has gained support.

Several funding sources

In 2008, the bridge board voted to hang a net to deter possible jumpers, or catch those who do jump. It chose that design over others that proposed erecting 10- to 12-foot barriers at the bridge's edges. Two years later, directors approved environmental studies on the net, and in 2011, they contracted for the net's design. Since then, they've tried to find funding for the net without using toll revenues.

A little less than two years ago, the district began to piece together the financial puzzle. Federal law changed to allow transportation funds to be used for safety projects, including nets and barriers. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission agreed to contribute $27 million in federal money, and Caltrans added $22 million in highway funds.

Since federal funding requires a local contribution, bridge officials proposed contributing $20 million from the district's reserves. Denis Mulligan,the district's general manager, said that in addition to attracting federal funds and saving lives, the district will reduce the financial and emotional costs of having bridge workers deal with jumpers.

The final $7 million was included in the recently adopted state budget. State Sen. Mark Leno, a former bridge district director, said that after he learned the funding package was coming together, he asked State Sen. President ProTem Darrell Steinberg to help obtain state money from Prop. 63, which taxed millionaires to fund mental-health programs. Steinbergagreed.

'Let's make the net real'

Steinberg, Leno, Hines, bridge officials and other barrier supporters gathered Thursday at the south end of the bridge, near a statue of Joseph Strauss, the structure's chief engineer, to explain and praise the news that funding has finally been pieced together.

"This bridge is a symbol of beauty and grace and should no longer be associated with suicide, should no longer be associated with untimely death," Steinberg said.

Hines, who said he felt regret the moment his fingers let go of the bridge railing, dismissed the argument that suicidal people will merely find another place or way to take their lives. So did Dr. David Pating, psychiatrist and vice chairman of the state's Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission.

"Suicide is an attempt to cope with unbearable pain, usually emotional in nature," he said. "This pain is cyclical and time-limited. ... We know that if the person can be prevented from dying, the pain can be treated or will recede on its own."

While the funding plan appears headed for approval, Hines urged to board to move forward.

"I am hopeful that the decision made here tomorrow will not only make history but will mean that not one more soul will be lost to that bridge, and not another family will be left with a dark abyss of eternal pain," he said. "Let's make the net real."