Golden Gate Bridge Getting First Suicide Net

Golden Gate Bridge directors today took a big step toward eliminating the span's unwanted distinction as the most popular spot in the nation for suicides, reports CNN. The board approved a $76 million project to install a steel safety net that will jut out from both sides of the bridge. It's expected to be in place in 2018, despite criticism that it will detract from the span's beauty, reports NBC Bay Area.

Directors, though, have got about 1,600 arguments in their favor—the number of suicides since the bridge opened in 1937, including a record 46 last year. "By approving this, we are putting a stop to 77 years of needless death and family devastation," a jumper who survived his suicide attempt in 2001 tells the San Francisco Chronicle. One of this year's suicides was the grandson of a public official who has led the push for the safety net. (More Golden Gate Bridge stories.)