Public transport in South Yorkshire

On buses and trams, single and multi-trip tickets can be purchased on-board. These are usually only valid for travel with the same operator. At the start of 2023, a £2 single fare cap was introduced on buses and trams as part of a nationwide scheme to combat the cost of living crisis.^[1] In November 2023 the tram fare cap was raised to £2.80,^[2] and on 1st January 2025, the bus fare cap was increased to £3 in line with the national fare cap scheme.^[3][4] Tram fares also increased again.

Travel South Yorkshire sells a range of multi-modal tickets on behalf of the public transport operators of South Yorkshire, including city-wide or countywide Travelmaster tickets.^[5] These are generally in the form of smart card tickets and can be used with any operator within the valid area.

Various concessionary travel schemes are available for young people and students, senior citizens and the mobility impaired.

There is a single reduced fare for children under 11 across all buses and trams. Children between 11 and 18 years old who live in South Yorkshire can get a free Zoom Under 16 or Zoom 16-18, which must be shown to travel at the child fare.^[6] Young people under 21 can get a Zoom Beyond 18-21 travel pass if they live in South Yorkshire, permitting the user to travel at reduced single fares on trams and some buses.^[7][8] This is also available to students 21 or younger who only live in South Yorkshire during term-time. There are also Zoom Zero passes which allow primary and secondary school students to travel to and from school for free - these can be purchased or funded by a local council if eligible.

Most operators offer reduced fares to students if shown a valid student ID. However, the exact fares can vary between operators. This may include both single and multi-day tickets.

Residents with some disabilities may be eligible for a free Disabled pass, which entitles them to free bus services within England and free tram services within South Yorkshire, along with free Northern train journeys between South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire.^[9] There is also the +Carer pass, which allows a carer to travel with the pass holder, and the Visually Impaired pass, which allows the holder to show the card to the driver instead of scanning it.

South Yorkshire residents who have reached state pension age are eligible for a free Senior pass, which entitles them to free bus services within England and free tram services within South Yorkshire during certain times of day.^[10] It also gives half-price tickets for Northern trains, and some free journeys to hospital appointments with some operators.

Since 1994, most bus routes in South Yorkshire have been operated by private companies. These include First, Stagecoach, TM Travel, and Hulleys of Baslow.^[11] There are some free "Sheffield Connect" bus services funded by SYMCA that operate in a loop though Sheffield city centre.^[12]

Travel South Yorkshire operate nine bus interchanges^[13] and several smaller stations, many of which have been newly built or refurbished in the early 2000s. These bus interchanges provide a hub for local, regional and sometimes national bus and coach services, and in some locations also provide an interchange facility onto tram and rail services.

Main interchanges^[13]

Name	Image	Location	Train station	Tram stop	Tram lines
					Blue	Yellow	Purple	Tram Train
Adwick Interchange		Church Lane, Adwick le Street, Doncaster	Adwick	None
Barnsley Interchange		Eldon Street North, Barnsley	Barnsley	None
Doncaster Interchange		Frenchgate Shopping Centre, Doncaster	Doncaster	None
Meadowhall Interchange		Meadowhall Shopping Centre, Sheffield	Meadowhall	Meadowhall Interchange		✓
Rotherham Interchange		Frederick Street, Rotherham	Rotherham Central (200m)	Rotherham Central (200m)				✓
Sheffield Interchange		Pond Square, Sheffield	Sheffield (200m)	Sheffield Station / Sheffield Hallam University (250m)	✓		✓
				Castle Square (250m)	✓	✓	✓	✓

'Mini' interchanges:

• Arundel Gate Interchange ( Castle Square, 150m)
• Dinnington Interchange
• Hillsborough Interchange

Smaller stations:

• Crystal Peaks Bus Station
• Grimethorpe Interchange
• Manor Top Bus Stop
• Mexborough Interchange ( Mexborough, 300m)

The South Yorkshire Supertram is operated by the South Yorkshire Combined Mayoral Authority,^[14] and runs regular services across four lines connecting various areas of Sheffield and Rotherham:^[15]

• Blue: Halfway - Malin Bridge
• Purple: Herdings Park - Cathedral
• Yellow: Meadowhall Interchange - Middlewood
• Tram-Train: Rotherham Parkgate - Cathedral

Single/return journey tickets can be purchased on-board, or multi-day tickets can be purchased online. Single long-journey tickets allow changing lines and are valid for 1 hour travelling in the same direction.

There are multiple railway stations in each of the four towns/cities of South Yorkshire. Regional services to destinations across the UK are available from Barnsley, Doncaster, Sheffield, and Meadowhall Interchange.

All stations with National Rail services are listed below (in no particular order):

Eleven new stations were opened by SYPTE between 1983 and 1993. Many of these were re-opened former stations previously closed in the 1960s under the Beeching cuts, but not all; Goldthorpe and Thurnscoe were entirely new stations, Rotherham Central was built to replace the closing Rotherham Masborough which was further away from Rotherham town centre, and Meadowhall Interchange was built to serve the new Meadowhall Shopping Centre. Rotherham Parkgate, the terminus of the Sheffield Supertram tram-train pilot scheme from Sheffield city centre, opened in October 2018.^[18]

• 1983 – Silkstone Common
• 1984 – Chapeltown (station re-sited)
• 1987 – Rotherham Central
• 1988 – Goldthorpe; Thurnscoe
• 1989 – Dodworth
• 1990 – Meadowhall Interchange; Swinton
• 1991 – Kirk Sandall
• 1992 – Bentley
• 1993 – Adwick
• 2018 – Rotherham Parkgate (tram-train stop)

Stations in italics are located outside of the South Yorkshire CMA area.

Notes:

^A – Station is located in West Yorkshire, but TSY multi-modal TravelMaster tickets are valid to and from these railway stations.

Before the Sheffield Supertram there used to tramway networks across each town in South Yorkshire. The Sheffield Tramway was the largest and the longest lasting, opening in 1873 and closing in 1960.^[19] Some of the trams used on the Sheffield Tramway are now at the National Tramway Museum.

In 1985, the SYPTE purchased an Alexander RH bodied Dennis Dominator trolleybus with a view to reintroducing a trolleybus network. A one mile section on Sandall Beat Road alongside Doncaster Racecourse was wired.^[20] However with deregulation in 1986, the project was shelved.