There was a bridge there as early as 1874 when a certain John McAllister was fined 5 shillings for being drunk and disorderly on Hebburn Railway Bridge. (He was one of many over the course of the years) In 1884 there was a severe storm in the area and the west parapet of the bridge was completely blown down.

Minutes of the Hebburn Local Board (later superseded by the District Council) regularly reported on the the unsatisfactory state of the bridge, being too narrow, and they were constantly pressing the North Eastern Railway to widen it and improve the footpaths. They were still complaining in 1896. I haven't yet found an article reporting on the work being completed, but clearly the existing bridge must be a new or extended construction.