The Golden Gate Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge built in the 1930’s opened to pedestrian traffic in 1937. The construction was financed by a $ 35 million bond issue voted by residents of San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma, Del Norte, Mendocino and Napa Counties. Construction began in January 1933.

A comprehensive seismic evaluation of the existing Golden Gate Bridge was performed using Program KARMA by engineers at karma2go, LLC. The bridge was subjected to a magnitude 8.3 earthquake and its vulnerabilities identified. Based on the nonlinear time history KARMA analyses results, seismic retrofit schemes were recommended for the San Francisco Approach Viaduct, the Arch over historic Fort Point called the Fort Point Arch, the two reinforced concrete pylons abutting the arch and the South Anchorage Housing which houses and anchors the suspension span cables at the San Francisco end. The recommended retrofits were incorporated in the KARMA models and the retrofitted bridge reanalyzed for the 8.3 magnitude earthquake. Model images and response animations were generated with program SWAMI.

Good Morning America - Golden Gate Bridge 28K | 56k (Windows Media Player Required)