Where that leaves Pasadena

Fewer people died at the bridge in the first few years after the fence went up. Those lower counts were recorded while access remained physically restricted. They don’t establish what would happen without the fence. 3, 28 In an oral update at the November 2023 committee meeting, a Police Department lieutenant reported deaths at the bridge in 2022 and 2023. The risk hadn’t disappeared. 3

Auckland, New Zealand, offers a documented warning. Grafton Bridge had suicide barriers for decades before the city removed them in 1996 amid concerns about their appearance, effects on the historic structure, and interference with rescue operations. Researchers recorded three deaths from the bridge in 1992–1995, before removal, and 15 in 1997–2000, after removal. After improved curved-glass barriers were installed in 2003, researchers recorded no suicides from the bridge during the following four years, describing the sequence as a natural experiment in what happens when a physical deterrent is present, removed, and restored. Low death counts may show that a barrier is working. They do not mean a bridge has become permanently “decoupled” from the risk of suicide.29

A city shouldn’t need another rise in deaths to remember why access was restricted in the first place.

The chain-link fence was installed in response to an emergency.28 It remains in place while Pasadena works toward a permanent design that can provide effective protection and preserve the bridge’s historic character.4,14,16

Construction funding remains unresolved. 28 The City transferred $176,000 from the design-phase account in 2025, though staff said enough remained to finish design. 41 When officials discussed moving more money in April 2026, Public Works warned that doing so would leave Pasadena without matching funds for a shortlisted application. 31

If Pasadena decides to keep the existing fence, it should explain why and how it’ll maintain effective protection. If people remain unhappy with how the fence looks, pressure to remove or weaken it could grow. 28, 29

Its effect on the bridge is visible every day. The deaths it may prevent are not.3,28