They Did It During The Great Depression, They Did It Without Computers, They Did It Without AutoCad

[Bluenorthwest]

61. That's absurd. The 'fledgling auto industry' was 30 years old when the bridge opened

The automobile had already taken the nation, had in fact carried most of California's population to the State, many in autos so old they famously broke down stranding hundreds of Dust Bowl refugees, poor people with cars.
Prior to the bridge opening, people used ferry services across the bay, including, wait for it, overburdened auto ferries taking cars across at a buck a pop, that's a 1935 buck, and it took about half an hour. Until the Golden Gate opened, San Francisco was the only major city in America with only ferry service and no bridges. The only city without.
The funding came from a bond issue by the counties involved including Sonoma and Marin. The city of Santa Rosa had much to do with the process as well. The stock market crash left the bonds without buyers, which is why Giannini of BofA bought the entire issue.
The planning for the bridge took more than a decade, and the project was designed and named before B of A bought the bonds. The auto industry really did not need to lobby for that which people and governments were calling for year after year. The Golden Gate connected Highway 1 and 101 north to south. The impact was not just local and was wider than regional, as the NW also benefited from opening transportation options.
History is there to read.