The Bridge was constructed originally as a Railway Bridge and opened in 1903 to replace the Old Ferry crossing, and when completed was the largest cantilever span of any other railway bridge in Great Britain aside from the Forth Bridge. The bridge crosses the Falls of Lora, a rocky shelf which causes spectacular rapids during the tide cycle. After the railway line closed in 1966, the bridge was converted for the exclusive use of road vehicles and pedestrians.

Connel Bridge sits high above the Lovely "Falls of Lora" a turbulent water disturbance created by a ridge lying just below the water mark, which really comes to life on a tidal sweep both in and out.