SAN FRANCISCO -- Three people climbed the suspension cables of the Golden Gate Bridge Monday morning in a protest against China, NBC11 reported.

The group identified themselves to NBC11 as Students for a Free Tibet from New York.

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NBC11 REPORT: 3 Climbers Scale Golden Gate Bridge To Support Tibet
LIVE INTERVIEW: Protester Talks To NBC11 By Phone While On Bridge
RAW VIDEO: Activists Climbing Golden Gate Bridge
SLIDESHOW: 'Free Tibet' Protesters Climb Golden Gate Bridge

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At 11:20 a.m., the three climbers unveiled two mesh banners that read "One Dream, Free Tibet 08." The sign cast a shadow on the lanes of the bridge, causing drivers to slow down and read the text.

Chopper11 showed a woman at the base of the bridge being arrested. She was wearing a T-shirt that had the words "Team Tibet" on it.

The three climbers hoisted up a cable between them. All three of the protesters were tethered together. The protesters came down around 1 p.m. and have been arrested on felony charges, according to CHP Officer Trent Cross.

Laurel Sutherlin, one of the climbers, called NBC11 from the bridge and spoke to Laura Garcia-Cannon.

"We need to make sure that they are not allowed to use this symbol of international unity as a tool to gain approval for what they're doing in Tibet," he said.

Authorities initially were planning to climb above the protestors and come down and cut the banners from above to get them down, according to Mary Curry, spokeswoman of the Golden Gate Bridge District.

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Protesters eventually came down on their own before the banners were cut.

Authorities originally decided against trying to cut the banners because of safety reasons.

The California Highway Patrol and the San Francisco Police Department were at the scene and told NBC11 they were initially taking a wait-and-see approach to the protestors because it was too dangerous to pull them down.

Sutherlin said the protestors had taken every precaution to ensure the safety of traffic on the bridge and they regretted any traffic delays.

"I certainly apologize for the minor inconveniences that people are facing," he said. "But I think in comparison to the torture and murders of Tibetan people that's happening, I think this is a very minor and unfortunate."

Curry said the students brought their supplies onto the bridge wrapped in a baby blanket and that is why they were able to sneak it past authorities.

Mary Ziegenbein from the CHP said four people were detained on the foot of the bridge and the CHP waited for the protestors to come down for safety reasons before detaining them.

One of the protestors agreed to come down with bridge workers at 12:20 p.m.

The three protesters had Tibetan flags as well, according to eyewitnesses. The banners were pulled down around 2 p.m., long after the protestors had been helped down by authorities.

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SLIDESHOW: 'Free Tibet' Protesters Climb Golden Gate Bridge

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The group said it plans to demonstrate at the torch relay on Wednesday as well.

Authorities had to push reporters back from the scene. Traffic underneath the bridge was slow and there was a Coast Guard ship circling the bridge, monitoring the situation. The eastern lane of the bridge was shut down along with the pedestrian walkway.

The northbound No. 3 lane from the toll plaza to the south tower that was closed shortly after the protest began around 10:25 a.m. was opened, but the sidewalks will remain closed indefinitely, according to the spokeswoman.

The event appeared to be part of an advance protest to Wednesday's Olympic torch relay in San Francisco.

The protesters wore helmets.

San Francisco is the only location in North America that is hosting the torch relay.

"The Chinese government is bringing the Olympic torch to San Francisco, while inside Tibet it continues its brutal and violent crackdown on Tibetans crying out for freedom," said Tashi Sharzur, one of those arrested today, in a prepared statement. "The International Olympic Committee must immediately withdraw Tibet from the Torch Relay route."

Paris Cancels Torch Run Amidst Protest

Organizers canceled the final leg of the Olympic run through Paris after chaotic protests Monday, snuffing out the torch and putting it aboard a bus in a humiliating concession to protesters decrying China's human rights record.

Worried officials extinguished the torch and placed it on the bus five times throughout the day as protesters tried to grab the torch and block the relay. At least two activists got almost an arm's length away before they were seized by police.

Another protester threw water at the torch but failed to put it out before being taken away.

The 17.4-mile route started at the Eiffel Tower, headed down the Champs-Elysées toward City Hall, then crossed the Seine before ending at the Charlety track and field stadium.

The chaos started at the Eiffel Tower moments after the relay began. Green Party activist Sylvain Garel lunged for the first torchbearer, former hurdler Stephane Diagana, and shouted "Freedom for the Chinese!" before security officials pulled him back.

The torch moved on but was soon put out by security officers and placed aboard the bus after a crowd of activists waving Tibetan flags confronted the torchbearer on a road along the Seine.

The torch went back on the bus less than an hour later after the procession was halted by activists who booed and chanted "Tibet!"

"We respect that right for people to demonstrate peacefully, but equally there is a right for the torch to pass peacefully and the runners to enjoy taking part in the relay," International Olympic Committee spokeswoman Giselle Davies told The Associated Press.

Security officials appeared to interrupt the procession for the third time simply because they had spotted demonstrators ahead. Protesters threw plastic bottles, cups and pieces of bread at the bus, and at a male athlete in a wheelchair.

"Nothing is happening as planned. It's unfortunate," Diagana told France 2 television.

The torch went back inside the bus a fourth time shortly after a protester approached it with a fire extinguisher near the Louvre. Officers grabbed the demonstrator before he could start to spray. Police said later that at least 28 people had been taken into custody.

The flame was whisked into a bus for the last time outside the National Assembly, where protesters gathered and a banner on the building read: "Respect for Human Rights in China."

Other demonstrators scaled the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame cathedral and hung banners depicting the Olympic rings as handcuffs.

"The flame shouldn't have come to Paris," said protester Carmen de Santiago, who had "free" painted on one cheek and "Tibet" on the other.

Activists carrying Chinese flags held counter-demonstrations.

"The Olympic Games are about sports. It's not fair to turn them into politics," said Gao Yi, a Chinese second-year doctoral student studying computer science in Paris.

Police had drawn up an elaborate plan to keep the torch in a safe "bubble," hoping to prevent the chaos that marred the relay Sunday in London, where police repeatedly scuffled with activists angry about China's human rights record.

One protester tried to grab the torch; another tried to put out the flame with what appeared to be a fire extinguisher. Thirty-seven people were arrested.

In Paris, about 3,000 officers were deployed on motorcycles, in jogging gear and with inline roller skates. Torchbearers were encircled by several hundred officers. Boats patrolled the Seine River, which slices through the French capital, and a helicopter flew overhead.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has left open the possibility of boycotting the Olympic opening ceremony in Beijing depending on how the situation evolves in Tibet. Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Monday that was still the case.

Activists have been protesting along the torch route since the flame embarked on its 85,000-mile journey from Ancient Olympia in Greece to the Aug. 8-24 Beijing Olympics.

The round-the-world trip is the longest in Olympic history, and is meant to highlight China's rising economic and political power. Activists have seized on it as a platform for their causes.

Beijing organizers criticized London's protesters, saying their actions were a "disgusting" form of sabotage by Tibetan separatists.

"The act of defiance from this small group of people is not popular," said Sun Weide, a spokesman for the Beijing Olympic organizing committee. "It will definitely be criticized by people who love peace and adore the Olympic spirit. Their attempt is doomed to failure."

The torch relay is also expected to face demonstrations in San Francisco, New Delhi and possibly other destinations on its 21-stop, six-continent tour before arriving in mainland China May 4.