Pontefract Tanshelf railway station is the most central station in the market town of Pontefract in West Yorkshire, England, and serves Pontefract Races, the racecourse located just down the street from the station. It lies on the Pontefract Line operated by Northern and is 8 miles (13 km) east of Wakefield Kirkgate.[1] In the days of coal mining in the Pontefract area, the station served the needs of the local workforce with regular and frequent services timed for the beginning and the end of mining shifts. The station is the closest to the former Prince of Wales Colliery which closed in August 2002.[2] The station serves Beechnut Lane, the home ground of Pontefract Collieries F.C.
Pontefract Tanshelf  | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 The view from platform 1, Class 156 DMU no. 156479 in old Arriva Trains Northern livery in August 2006 | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Pontefract, City of Wakefield England | ||||
| Coordinates | 53°41′38″N 1°19′08″W / 53.694°N 1.319°W | ||||
| Grid reference | SE450221 | ||||
| Managed by | Northern | ||||
| Transit authority | West Yorkshire Metro | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | POT | ||||
| Fare zone | 3 | ||||
| Classification | DfT category F2 | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 17 July 1871 | Station opened as Tanshelf | ||||
| 1 December 1936 | Station renamed Pontefract Tanshelf | ||||
| 2 January 1967 | Station closed | ||||
| 11 May 1992 | Station reopened | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2019/20 |  53,538 | ||||
| 2020/21 |  8,388 | ||||
| 2021/22 | 30,440 | ||||
| 2022/23 | 85,368 | ||||
| 2023/24 | 91,090 | ||||
| |||||
The first station on the site was opened on 17 July 1871 as Tanshelf, being renamed Pontefract Tanshelf on 1 December 1936.[3] It was closed on 2 January 1967,[4] when the passenger services were diverted away from the direct line to Wakefield Kirkgate (via Featherstone, to serve Leeds via Castleford.[5] The present station was opened by West Yorkshire Metro on 11 May 1992, when the line between Wakefield Kirkgate and Pontefract Monkhill was reopened.
The other stations in the town are Pontefract Monkhill and Pontefract Baghill.[6]
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Unlike Pontefract Monkhill, both platforms of Tanshelf are wheelchair-accessible.
Services
editOn Monday to Saturday, there is an hourly service to Wakefield Kirkgate and Leeds and also hourly to Knottingley. On Sundays, there is a two-hourly service each way to the same destinations.
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Trains | ||||
References
edit- ^ Padgett, David (2016). Railway track diagrams, book 2; Eastern (4 ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. ISBN 978-0-9549866-8-1.
- ^ Wainwright, Martin (31 August 2002). "Britain's oldest mine closes". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Quick, Michael (2019). "Railway Passenger Stations in England, Scotland and Wales; a Chronology" (PDF). rchs.org.uk. p. 326. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Haigh, AJ (2012). Railways in West Yorkshire : Leeds, Bradford, Wakefield, Huddersfield & the West Riding : an illustrated general history of the railways in the West Riding from the grouping to the present time (2 ed.). Xpress Publishing. p. 77. ISBN 978-1-901056-44-0.
- ^ Body, Geoffrey (1989). Railways of the Eastern Region. Wellingborough: P. Stephens. p. 143. ISBN 1-85260-072-1.
- ^ "Pontefract Turf Account". The Northern Echo. 13 March 2002. p. 3. ISSN 2043-0442.
External links
edit
Media related to Pontefract Tanshelf railway station at Wikimedia Commons
- Train times and station information for Pontefract Tanshelf railway station from National Rail
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