Pontefract Tanshelf railway station is the most central station in the town of

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wak ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, 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 east of Wakefield Kirkgate. In the days of coal mining in the Pontefract area, the station served the needs of the local

workforce The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single company or industry, but can also apply to a geographic reg ...

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 The Prince of Wales Colliery was a coal mine that operated for over 130 years in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England. It was permanently closed in 2002 after geological problems were found to make accessing remaining coal reserves unprofitable, ...

which closed in 2002. The station serves Beechnut Lane, the home ground of

Pontefract Collieries F.C. Pontefract Collieries Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England. The team currently plays in the . The club is affiliated to the West Riding County Football Association and Castleford & Dist ...

The first station on the site was opened in July 1871 as ''Tanshelf'', being renamed ''Pontefract Tanshelf'' in 1936. It was closed in January 1967, when the passenger services were diverted away from the direct line to Wakefield Kirkgate (via , to serve Leeds via Castleford. The present station was opened by

West Yorkshire Metro Metro is the passenger information brand used by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority in England. It was formed on 1 April 1974 as the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (WYPTE) at the same time as the metropolitan county of West Yor ...

on 11 May 1992, when the line between and was reopened. The other stations in the town are

Pontefract Monkhill Pontefract Monkhill railway station is the busiest station in the town of Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England. The station is on the Pontefract Line managed by Northern (train operating company), Northern but is also served by Grand Central (tr ...

and Pontefract Baghill. BR class 141 Pacer 141 113

Unlike Pontefract Monkhill, both platforms of Tanshelf are wheelchair-accessible.

Services

On Monday to Saturday, there is an hourly service to Wakefield Kirkgate and and also hourly to

Knottingley Knottingley is a market town in the City of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England on the River Aire and the old A1 road before it was bypassed as the A1(M). Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it has a population of 13,503, inc ...

. On Sundays, there is a two-hourly service each way to the same destinations.

References

External links

Railway stations in Wakefield DfT Category F2 stations Former Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1871 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1967 Reopened railway stations in Great Britain Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1992 Northern franchise railway stations Beeching closures in England Pontefract {{Yorkshire-Humber-railstation-stub