Steeton & Silsden Station Car Park

Thanks for your question. 

The car park is now expected to be completed in May 2024, subject to final approvals from Bradford Council.

Thanks for your question. 

The car park is now expected to be completed in May 2024, subject to final approvals from Bradford Council.

Thank you for your enquiry regarding the new multi storey Steeton & Silsden station car park.

The Combined Authority is working in partnership with Northern Trains Ltd. and Network Rail to provide the new car park at Steeton & Silsden. 

The ramps to connect the car park to the highway will form part of the final construction phase. This requires approval from the council as the highway authority.

The contractor estimates that, subject to the necessary approvals and licences being granted by the council, the ramps will be completed during February 2024, followed by testing and commissioning of the car park before it is fully opened in March.

Thank you for your continued patience in relation to this matter.

Thank you for your question.

The scope of the Rail Park & Ride Programme is to increase car parking provision at rail stations across the region and the funding of accessibility improvements to platforms falls outside of the scope of the available funding.

The Combined Authority shares your concerns and is very aware of the difficulties associated with accessing rail stations within West Yorkshire which are not fully accessible, but the delivery of large-scale changes to station infrastructure requires significant investment which is largely unaffordable without government funding assistance.  

The current accessibility at Steeton & Silsden station is step-free, however not ideal in terms of the distance between the staggered platforms and the use of Station Road.

Overall responsibility for provision of access to the rail network for those with disabilities or general mobility problems lies with the Train Operating Companies.  However, the Train Operators have not been funded through their agreements with Department for Transport (DfT) to invest in large-scale accessibility improvements, so the onus was always on them to bid for funds.

The Combined Authority has a role in identifying where such improvements are needed but has also not been funded to invest in major accessibility improvements, though we have used our Local Transport Plan funding to provide match funding to bid for DfT “Access for All” schemes in the last few years.

The DfT National ‘Access for All’ programme, which is part of the ‘Railways for All’ strategy, was created in 2006 to address issues faced by passengers in accessing rail stations and funds the delivery of improvements including lifts/ramps/footbridges to provide obstacle free, accessible routes to/from and between platforms.  The price range for these types of infrastructure improvements is currently around £2.5 to £5m per station.

The ‘Access for All’ funding programme bidding rounds become available every 5-years and the next round for the 2024-2029 closed to station nominations in September 2022. The Combined Authority together with Northern submitted a joint bid nominating 7 stations following assessment of stations in West Yorkshire based on the DfT’s set criteria. We anticipate the outcome of the bid to be announced in the coming months. Unfortunately, Steeton & Silsden did not score high enough to be a nominated station on this occasion, but it remains within the list of stations that we will continue to seek funding opportunities for large-scale accessibility improvements. 

Thanks for your question, we can confirm now that the car park opening date is expected to be early January 2024.

Thank you for your query. The car park is due to open early November, therefore it will not be accessible on Thursday 28th September.

There are 40 available spaces whilst the works are ongoing, although a space cannot be guaranteed.

Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause you.

Transport Projects Team

Hi there, Northern Trains Ltd operate the car park and should be able to advise you on this. You can contact them various ways - please visit https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/about-us/contact-directory for details.

Thanks for your comments regarding the car park extension at Steeton & Silsden. 

 The project is being delivered by Northern Trains Ltd, the train operating company, and funded by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. Once the car park is completed, it will be free to use and will be owned and maintained by Northern. Bradford Council are in support of the scheme and have been a key stakeholder in the progression of the project and its various approvals. 

Thank you for your question, yes, Bradford Council are leading on the ‘Steeton & Silsden Cycling and Walking Improvements’ scheme with support from consultants. The scheme is currently at Outline Business Case Stage. Further information can be provided by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, Department of Place.