York Historic Environment Record

The bridge is part of The Great North of England Railway Line that initially connected Darlington and York when open in 1841. The line was amalgamated with other railway companies in 1854 to form North Easten Railway, providing York with railway connections further afield, including Newcastle, Edinburgh, and London.
It is one of only two river-crossing railway bridges between Darlington and York: one over the River Tees and this one over the River Ouse. It is one of only three railway river-crossing bridges in the York boundary. Of these, this is the oldest and the only multi-span, stone arch bridge, giving it strong significance for its age and rarity.
It is built of sandstone from quarries in Knaresborough and has three elliptical arches spanning 66 ft (20m) each, making the bridge's length nearly 300ft (91m).
It was designed by J[ohn] & B[enjamin] Green of Newcastle; most likely by John Green. J & B Green are famous for their churches and bridges, but also Newcastle Theatre Royal and the city's Grey's Monument. The engineer was Thomas Storey (engineer-in-chief of the Great North of England Railway Line).
These credentials give it high historical value.

York Civic Trust