Hanging the Roadway Deck

Hanging the Roadway Deck. . The steel trusses on each side of the roadway deck structure along its length can be identified by their triangles. The trusses support beams holding up the roadway and stiffen the deck structure against wind. They span 50 feet (15 meters) between the vertical steel suspender ropes that support them. The vertical suspenders pull the weight of the deck, along with its traffic, up to the main cables. When installed, the 250 pairs of suspender ropes looked like strings on a giant harp., An advantage of a suspension bridge is that once the towers, anchorages, and main cables are installed, no temporary supports are needed under the bridge to build the roadway deck. The deck is built in sections, proceeding out from the towers in a balanced way, each section hung from the suspenders., The final piece of the overall structure, the roadway deck structure with its paving, was in place by April 19, 1937, about a month before the Bridge opened., Captions , Top left: Solid steel beams across the width of the deck are supported by the steel trusses running the length of the Bridge. Under the deck is the temporary safety net. Bev Washburn Collection, Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District , Bottom row, left to right: , . The steel trusses may seem small from a distance, but they are 25 feet (7.6 meters) deep. Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley , . Looking north, toward the Marin County end of the Bridge. The suspender ropes are in place, ready for deck installation. Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley , . In the foreground at left is a grooved clamp or cable band on the main cable, with steel suspender ropes going over it and attached to the deck to hold it up. Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley , Top right: During construction, sections of the roadway deck slowly grew to meet in the middle and reach the land on both sides of the Golden Gate. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District