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Officials announce plan to silence Golden Gate Bridge eerie howl

Traffic flows over the Golden Gate Bridge during the morning commute on March 25, 2013 in San Francisco, California.
Traffic flows over the Golden Gate Bridge during the morning commute on March 25, 2013 in San Francisco, California.
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Golden Gate officials have announced a proposal to stop the eerie noises echoing from the bridge during high winds.

With the help of bridge aerodynamics specialists, acoustics experts and $450,000, the Golden Gate's wailing song will be silenced by the end of 2022, the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District stated.


The proposal calls for the installation of thin, u-shaped clips attached to the 12,000 slats running vertically on the west railing. The clips, which are one eighth of an inch thick, will cover each slat from top to bottom with a thin rubber sleeve to diminish vibrations.

Keeping aesthetics in mind, officials promised that the clips will be painted International Orange, making them virtually invisible to an untrained eye.

"The u-shaped clips work to reduce or eliminate sounds by lightly disrupting the flow of air as it passes over each slat, minimizing 'vortex shedding', or the creation of small vibrations in the air," the district explained.

Howling tones may still be audible during rare instances of severe wind, but the clips are proven to reduce sounds by 75%.