Travelling to a Wakefield College Campus

Wakefield College has three Campuses situated in Wakefield city centre, Thornes Park and the skillsXchange at Glasshoughton. Wakefield and Thornes Park are easily accessible from Ossett, Horbury, Castleford, Normanton, Pontefract, Hemsworth and South Elmsall as well as having excellent rail connections. The skillsXchange is well served by both bus and rail and is situated less than a mile from Junction 32 of the M62.

Walking

Wakefield Campus is a five minute walk from the city centre and Thornes a ten to fifteen minute walk from the centre of Wakefield and the bus station. The skillsXchange is less than half a mile from Glasshoughton railway station and the Xscape complex and has easy and safe pathways and crossings.

Cycling

The College provides secure storage for cycles on all three Campuses. A list of safe cycle routes and dedicated cycle paths for the District can be found by visiting the local authority web site www.wakefield.gov.uk/transportandtravel.

Public Transport & the Wakefield Free City Bus

The Journey Planner on Metro’s website at www.wymetro.com is one of the easiest ways to work out your journey to College or anywhere in Yorkshire by bus and train. You can plan your journey from any postcode, street or town. You can select your time of arrival at your destination. It will show you which buses and trains you need to catch, where and when, plus helpful maps.

Call Metro Line on 0113 245 7676, open 0700 to 2200 daily (excluding Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day), for advice on bus and train times, where to catch your bus and much more. Personal enquiries are welcome at the Travel Centres at Wakefield, Pontefract and Castleford bus stations.

Your next bus
When’s the next bus? Just text! Metro’s ‘your next bus’ information service uses GPS satellite technology to track the location of buses in West Yorkshire. This means you can find out the scheduled or real time for any bus, at any stop. You can access the service by sending a text message or via the internet. Simply text the 8 digit bus stop number to 63876 (which spells METRO) and you’ll get a text telling you when the next bus will be along. Visit www.wymetro.com for full details. Outbound texts are charged at your standard outbound rate - ask your service provider. Returned texts are charged at a maximum of 12p.

Wakefield Free City Bus
Have you discovered this new free service yet to help you get round Wakefield city centre? Wakefield Free City Bus service links the city’s Westgate and Kirkgate train and bus stations, shops and retail parks including the Ridings Centre and Westgate Retail and Leisure Parks. Buses run every ten minutes from 7:30am to 7:00pm, Monday to Friday and 8:30am to 5:00pm on Saturdays. The three, 29-seat buses are clearly marked Free City Bus.

Stops 9 (Westgate Retail Park) and 10 (Westgate Station) are the closest to Thornes Park Campus. Wakefield nearest stop is stop 12 (Bus Station).

Rail

Air

There are several airports close by. Leeds Bradford Airport, Robin Hood Airport in Doncaster and Manchester Airport.

Car Parking

Parking availability at each Campus varies and is particularly limited at Wakefield Campus (no student parking available). Thornes Park and the skillsXchange Campuses have ample parking for both staff and students. Parking for disabled staff and students is available at all Campuses.