Golden Gate Bridge travel guide describes the Golden Gate Bridge as "possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world." At the time of its opening in 1937, it was both the longest and the tallest suspension bridge in the world, with a main span of and a total height of . Before the bridge was built, the only practical short route between San Francisco and what is now Marin County was by boat across a section of San Francisco Bay. A ferry service began as early as 1820, with a regularly scheduled service beginning in the 1840s for the
Suicides at the Golden Gate Bridge with saving hundreds of lives of would-be jumpers by talking to them before they can take the plunge. The CHP estimates that with the help of cameras and the volunteers at least 80–90% of people intending to jump are prevented from doing so. On October 10, 2008 the Golden Gate Bridge and Transportation District Board of Directors voted 15 to 1 for the preferred option of installing a plastic-covered stainless-steel net below the bridge as a suicide deterrent. The netting barrier was initially estimated to cost $40–50 million to complete. On July 28, 2010, the board received $5 million from