Council welcomes the opening of second platform at Castleford station

After years of campaigning to make it happen, the Leader of Wakefield Council has welcomed the reopening of the second platform at Castleford station.

You can now catch a train from the platform, for the first time since the 1970s.

On its opening day, Cllr Denise Jeffery, Leader of Wakefield Council, was among the first to visit the station’s new platform.

She said "it’s taken us more than five years of lobbying to reach our goal but it’s worth it."

"Strong rail links can support business growth and job creation in Castleford.

Along with our existing plans, to revitalise the town with our Town Deal funded projects and the recent funding from government of £20 million we can deliver long-term regeneration to the area and create opportunities for people in the town."

A new direct York to Manchester train service, via Castleford, Normanton and Wakefield Kirkgate, has also started running today.

Cllr Matthew Morley, Cabinet Member for Planning and Highways, said “A new train service along with a second platform will make Castleford more accessible to the rest of the district and further afield. More rail journeys will improve connections to key cities in the north which is great for business."

“Train travel can also reduce congestion on our roads which is great for the environment as there is less pollution caused by vehicles"

To complement the new train services, we are investing in upgrading key areas around the station, which are popular routes with the public travelling to and from Castleford station.

A grant of £720,000 has come from the Department for Transport and Network Rail, to enable the work to take place. The money will be spent on projects that encourage people to walk and cycle and therefore reduce the number of people driving to and from the station.

To achieve this, we will install more street lighting and CCTV cameras, to make the area around the station feel safer and create a more welcoming feel for people coming to the station.  Public artwork and small landscaping projects are also planned to make the area vibrant and encourage more visitors.

Work is due to begin early next year on these improvements and should be completed by early 2025.

The reopening of the second platform was delivered by Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) a major, multi-billion-pound programme of railway improvements, funded by the Department for Transport and delivered by Network Rail.