Golden Gate Bridge To Have Suicide Barrier Nets

Golden Gate Bridge directors voted overwhelmingly late this morning to hang nets alongside the landmark bridge to prevent suicides. Directors voted 14-to-1 for the nets with the lone "no" vote from Director James Eddie of Mendocino, who said that people in his county did not support a barrier. The decision was greeted with applause from an audience of about 50 people, including psychiatrists, suicide prevention experts and family members of people who had jumped to their deaths from the bridge. "This is a red-letter day," said Dr. Mel Blaustein, director of psychiatry at St. Francis Hospital in San Francisco. "There's been a real change in attitude on this board, and I'm thrilled. It's just marvelous." The net, which is expected to cost $40 million to $50 million, was the least costly of five proposed suicide barriers, which included 10-to-12-foot vertical or horizontal barriers that would sit atop the existing 4-foot railings.