The crossing
125 m on a narrow deck that sways a little.
Bernard Gagnon — CC BY 4.0 · Bernard Gagnon — CC BY 4.0 · Zakiiii94 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Zakiiii94 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bernard Gagnon — CC BY 4.0
The Mellah Slimane Footbridge is a walkers-only suspension bridge, 125 m long and about 107 m above the Rhumel river, linking the railway-station district on the east bank of the gorge with Constantine's old town on its rock. It opened on 12 April 1925 to a design by the French engineer Ferdinand Arnodin, who also designed the Sidi M'Cid Bridge. Work began in 1917, with the metalwork made at Arnodin's works in Châteauneuf-sur-Loire, France; he died in April 1924, a year before the opening. First called the Perrégaux footbridge, it was renamed after independence in 1962 for Slimane Mellah, a son of the city. Locals call it the lift bridge. In the early 2000s the Algerian firm SAPTA replaced its cables. The deck, only about 2.5 m wide, sways a little underfoot above the sheer drop. A masonry portal tower anchors the station end and a five-storey lift building the old-town end. In Arnodin's manner, slanting stays brace the ends of the deck, and vertical hangers tie only its middle to the main cables. Roughly halfway between the Sidi Rached Viaduct, about 450 m south, and the Bab El Kantara bridge, about 400 m north-east, it fits easily into a walk along the city's bridges. From the old-town end, stairs and the lift climb to Larbi Ben M'hidi Street; the Palace of Ahmed Bey lies under 400 m west and the Sidi M'Cid Bridge about 700 m north, as the crow flies. A sweet shop beside the bridge makes jawziya, Constantine's walnut nougat.
125 m on a narrow deck that sways a little.
A five-storey lift building at the old-town end.
Slanting stays at the ends, hangers in the middle.
Rhumel gorge, between Larbi Ben M'hidi Street and the station district, Constantine
Palace of Ahmed BeyA masterpiece of Ottoman architecture in eastern Algeria, a palace built by El H5 minutes walk
Sidi Rached ViaductA huge stone viaduct of successive arches crossing the Rhumel gorge south of the6 minutes walk4.5
Sidi M'Cid BridgeThe symbol of Constantine, the city of suspended bridges, a suspension bridge fo8 minutes walk4.6
War Memorial and Gorge ViewpointConstantine's finest viewpoint, on a high plateau north of the old town, where a13 minutes walkA Constantine-born activist of the independence movement, born in 1920 and nicknamed Rachid El-Helwani after his trade as a pastry maker. He died in the Collo mountains in 1958, and the footbridge has carried his name since independence.
A December 2025 visitor guide reports it running, often with a queue of older locals; if it is busy or out of service, take the stairs beside it.