Passerelle Debilly, Steel footbridge over the Seine in Paris, France
The Passerelle Debilly is a through arch footbridge over the Seine, linking the 7th and 16th arrondissements. Its white steel arch is built of crisscrossing lattice members springing from two solid abutments, with a flat deck hung beneath by vertical hangers. The deck carries a railing of vertical balusters, and a shallow lower chord mirrors the arch below.
The bridge was originally built for the 1900 World Exposition in Paris and was later moved to its current location over the Seine in 1906. This relocation was a notable engineering achievement that allowed for the reshaping of this area of the city.
The bridge's name honours General Jean Louis Debilly, killed at the Battle of Jena in 1806; it was earlier called passerelle de Magdebourg. It has appeared in films including La Fille sur le pont (1999) and Femme fatale (2002), and in 2024 hosted an opening-ceremony performance that drew both protests and a counter-ceremony on the deck.
The bridge links the avenue de New-York on the 16th-arrondissement bank with the quai Branly and quai Jacques-Chirac on the 7th side. The nearest metro stop is Iéna, northwest of the bridge; from there walk east along avenue du Président Wilson, then south down rue de la Manutention. The deck carries both pedestrians and cyclists.
The bridge is adorned with decorative dark green ceramic tiles that form wave patterns along its steel structure. These fine ceramic details are often overlooked, but they give the structure a crafted character that sets it apart from other modern steel constructions.
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