Now that a net on the Golden Gate Bridge has proven to prevent suicides, bipartisan federal legislation has been introduced that would provide funding for suicide barriers—a tall railing or a net—at other jump sites in the U.S. The legislation has flaws, but the intent is meaningful. If the bill passes, other communities with jump sites won’t have to wait until more than 2,000 people have died—as they have at the Golden Gate Bridge—before a physical suicide deterrent is erected.
In September, senators Alex Padilla and Thom Tillis introduced the bipartisan Barriers to Suicide Act. It would create a competitive grant process for local and state governments to apply for funding to install tall railings or nets at jump sites, and fund a study to assess ways to reduce such deaths.[1]
“Too many Americans die by suicide, and we know physical barriers can help save lives during times of crisis,” Padilla said in a statement that touted the effectiveness of the Golden Gate Bridge suicide prevention net. “The Barriers to Suicide Act is commonsense, life-saving legislation that will help enhance safety standards and make our public infrastructure safer.”[2]
When he heard about The Barriers to Suicide Act, former Marin County coroner Ken Holmes was pleased but also wistful. During most of his four decades in office, Holmes and his staff were responsible for handling the bodies of Golden Gate Bridge suicides, and he saw firsthand the physical impact on victims and the emotional impact on families. “If only they had listened to us 20 years ago,” he lamented. [3]
By “us” he meant several people who advocated for a barrier early on; later, many others joined them. By “they” he meant the Golden Gate Bridge District board, San Francisco supervisors, former mayor Gavin Newsom, and other elected officials, the majority of whom were slow to embrace the addition of a physical suicide deterrent on San Francisco’s world-famous span.
Is a physical suicide barrier at all or nearly all jump sites—tall bridges, buildings, parking structures, freeway overpasses, cliffs, train crossings, and elsewhere—the answer to preventing suicides? Obviously not, since the majority of suicides are with a firearm, and secondarily by overdosing. Jumps account for fewer than 5 percent of all suicide deaths. Nevertheless, jumping deaths—as opposed to firearm deaths and overdoses—are relatively easy to prevent. A physical barrier ends the problem. With guns and pills, it’s more difficult. The prevalence of firearms and drugs, the ease with which they can be procured, and the opposition to any legislation by various industries that limits access make getting a bill passed nearly impossible.
If the net on the Golden Gate Bridge had been in place 20 years ago, roughly 500 people probably would still be alive today. It’s too late for them, but not for many others. That’s the point of the Barriers to Suicide Act.
