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Pontefract line
A Northern TrainsClass 158 at Pontefract Monkhill, August 2021
Overview
Owner	Network Rail
Locale	Yorkshire and the Humber
Termini	Leeds,Wakefield Westgate, Goole
Stations	16
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)standard gauge
Route map (Click to expand)

v t e Pontefract Line
Legend
Selby Line Leeds Wakefield,Airedale, and Huddersfield lines Leeds New Approach Leeds Hunslet Lane Hunslet Middleton Railway EWYUR Woodlesford Methley North Methley Junction Methley Joint Railway Methley South Altofts and Whitwood Castleford Cutsyke Hallam line Castleford Castleford–Garforth line toSherburn-in-Elmet Glasshoughton Hallam line Wakefield line toLeeds / toDoncaster Wakefield Westgate Wakefield Kirkgate North Midland Railway toFitzwilliam Dearne Valley Railway Crofton Sharlston Streethouse Featherstone Pontefract Tanshelf Pontefract Monkhill toPontefract Baghill Dearne Valley line Knottingley Askern branch line Whitley Bridge Hensall East Coast Main Line Hull and Barnsley Railway H&B and GC Joint Railway Snaith Rawcliffe Selby–Goole line Hull and Doncaster Branch toDoncaster Goole (L&Y) Goole Hull and Doncaster Branch toHull

ThePontefract line is aWest Yorkshire Metro railway route inYorkshire, England. The route linksWakefield andLeeds withGoole, viaPontefract. The Metro timetable for the line also includes services operated as theDearne Valley line betweenYork andSheffield via Pontefract.

The line, which passes through the former mining areas to the east of Wakefield andCastleford, has the greatest number of stations opened by the West Yorkshire Metro. MetroCards are available on the route as far asKnottingley; a limited service continues to Goole by this route.

Railways in the area opened as follows:

• 1 April 1848:^[1] theWakefield, Pontefract and Goole Railway opened, which was 27 miles (43 km) in length. This line passed through and served Knottingley, which was then producing some 65,000 tons of burnt lime a year, mainly used for agricultural and building purposes
• February 1854: theGreat Northern Railway (GNR) andLancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) jointly administered Knottingley station
• August 1850: Knottingley to Burton Salmon line opened. Trains were able to run from London to York via Knottingley, which was the station to change to and from trains into the heart of the West Riding, and so it became a major junction
• May 1879: TheSwinton and Knottingley Railway opened, connecting Sheffield and York via Pontefract;Ferrybridge opened three years later.

Before the1923 Grouping the lines over which the service operates were owned by:

• Leeds –Methley:Midland Railway (MR)
• Methley – Pontefract (Monkhill) – Goole: L&YR
• Wakefield Westgate station: joint GNR/L&YR
• Wakefield – Pontefract (Monkhill): L&YR

Trains using the Pontefract line from Leeds use the same route as theHallam line to Methley Junction:

• Woodlesford
• here is Methley Junction, where lines of the MR, L&YR and theGreat Northern Railway (GNR) converged
• Castleford (also on theHallam line andHuddersfield line)
• Glasshoughton (opened 21 February 2005)
• Pontefract Monkhill: junction with Wakefield line
• Knottingley: joint L&YR/GNR station. The Dearne Valley line has a junction at this point; there is also theAskern branch line forDoncaster
• Whitley Bridge
• runs under theEast Coast Main Line
• Hensall: junction for theHull and Barnsley Railway (HBR – now toDrax); and the jointGCR/HBR line crossed the line about a mile further east
• Snaith
• Rawcliffe
• Oakhills Junction with theSelby–Goole line closed in 1964
• Goole.

The Wakefield service joins the Leeds service at Pontefract; the stations served for this section are:

• Wakefield Westgate (also served by theWakefield line): the station was jointly owned by GCR and GNR; to the south was the West Riding and Grimsby Joint Railway (also owned by those companies)
• Wakefield Kirkgate, the previous terminus for most services on this line
• leaving Wakefield, there were a large number of junctions between there andCrofton
• there were two stations on this line serving Crofton andSharlston
• Streethouse
• Featherstone
• Pontefract Tanshelf
• Pontefract Monkhill, where the Leeds line joins.

Both services now run hourly to Leeds from Knottingley; this provides a combined half-hourly service between Knottingley, Pontefract Monkhill and Leeds.^[2]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toPontefract Line.

• Pontefract Line, including a map

• Rail transport in West Yorkshire
• Transport in Leeds
• Railway lines in Yorkshire and the Humber
• Rail transport in North Yorkshire
• Rail transport in the East Riding of Yorkshire

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