Bus route 81 in Leeds runs between “City Square” and “Pudsey Bus Station”. The two directions are not quite the same: 3 stops are served in one direction only, which is worth knowing before you travel.
The route of bus 81
Towards “Pudsey Bus Station”: 51 stops. After “City Square”, the bus calls at “Wellington”, “Kirkstall Fire Station”, “Washington Street”, “ITV Yorkshire”, “Burley Place”, “Forge Lane”, “Aviary Road”, “Crab Lane”, “Armley Town Street”, “Armley Leisure Centre”. Then “Carr Crofts Drive”, “Cross Lane”, “Thornhill Road End”, “Five Lane Ends”, “Green Hill Gardens”, “Western Flatts Cliff Park”, “Leysholme”, “Western Cliff Flatts Park”, “Green Top”, “Western Grove”. Then “Blue Hill Lane”, “Cliffe Park Crescent”, “Blue Hill Lane End”, “Silver Royd Hill”, “Stonebridge Lane”, “Tong Approach”, “Water Lane”, “Butt Lane”, “Hare Farm Avenue”, “Wood Lane”. Then “Hough End”, “Wellstone Avenue”, “Swinnow Moor”, “Swinnow Co-Op”, “Harley Road”, “Intake Road”, “Sycamore Chase”, “Pudsey Sixth Form College”, “Littlemoor Bottom”, “Acres Hall Drive”. Before “Pudsey Bus Station”: “Acres Hall Avenue”, “Adcock Bank Farm”, “Turning Circle”, “Valley Square”, “Brick Mill Road”, “Littlemoor Road”, “Radcliffe Lane”, “Spinners Chase”, “Pudsey Town Hall”.
On the way back, from “Pudsey Bus Station” to “City Square”: 51 stops. After “Acres Hall Avenue”, the bus runs a loop via “Adcock Bank Farm” and “Turning Circle” and returns to “Acres Hall Avenue”. Only in this direction does it call at “Crawshaw Park”, “Swinnow Green”, “Tong Road”, “Branch Road”, “Pickering St Canal Road” and “Willow Road”. Only in the direction of “Pudsey Bus Station” does it call at “Aviary Road”, “Crab Lane”, “Stonebridge Lane”, “Butt Lane”, “Harley Road” and “Pudsey Town Hall”. For the way back, board nearby: “Crab Lane” → “Branch Road” (150 m), “Stonebridge Lane” → “Tong Road” (100 m), “Butt Lane” → “Water Lane” (50 m) and “Harley Road” → “Swinnow Co-Op” (200 m). Towards “Pudsey Bus Station”, board nearby: “Swinnow Green” → “Harley Road” (200 m), “Tong Road” → “Stonebridge Lane” (100 m), “Branch Road” → “Crab Lane” (150 m) and “Willow Road” → “ITV Yorkshire” (100 m).
Left column runs down, right column runs up. Filled stops are served both ways, dashed ones only one way: 8 towards “Pudsey Bus Station” and 9 the other way. Tap a stop to see its name.
Connections
On part of the route, between “City Square” and “ITV Yorkshire” it shares the road with routes 33, 34 and 60A; between “Wellington” and “ITV Yorkshire” it shares the road with route 1; between “City Square” and “Washington Street” it shares the road with route 14.
Connections by stop, in route order:
- “City Square”: buses 4, 7, 7A, 7S, 15, 16, 16A, 19, 19A, 24, 42, 49, 50, 50A, 64, 65, 72, 163, 200, 201, 202, 203, 229, 253, 254, 255, X6 and X11
- “Wellington”: buses 4, 15, 16, 16A, 42, 65, 229, 253, 254, 255 and X11
- “Kirkstall Fire Station”: buses 19, 19A, 42, 49, 50, 50A, 72, 229, 253, 254 and 255
- “Washington Street”: buses 19, 19A, 49, 50 and 50A
- “ITV Yorkshire”: buses 19, 19A, 49, 50 and 50A
- “Crab Lane” (only towards “Pudsey Bus Station”): buses 15, 16, 16A, 72, 86, X6 and X11
- “Armley Town Street”: buses 15, 16, 16A, 72, 86, X6 and X11
- “Carr Crofts Drive”: buses 4, 15, 16, 16A and 86
- “Five Lane Ends”: bus 42
- “Green Top”: bus 42
- “Western Grove”: bus 42
- “Silver Royd Hill”: buses 4 and 15
- “Stonebridge Lane” (only towards “Pudsey Bus Station”): bus 4
- “Tong Approach”: bus 15
- “Water Lane”: buses 4 and 15
- “Butt Lane” (only towards “Pudsey Bus Station”): buses 4 and 15
- “Hare Farm Avenue”: buses 4 and 15
- “Swinnow Co-Op”: buses 4 and X11
- “Harley Road” (only towards “Pudsey Bus Station”): buses 4 and X11
- “Intake Road”: buses 4 and X11
- “Spinners Chase”: buses 4, 16, 16A, 91, 205 and X11
- “Pudsey Town Hall” (only towards “Pudsey Bus Station”): buses 4, 16, 16A, 91, 205 and X11
- “Pudsey Bus Station”: buses 4, 16, 16A, 91, 205 and X11
- “Swinnow Green” (only towards “City Square”): buses 4 and X11
- “Tong Road” (only towards “City Square”): bus 4
- “Branch Road” (only towards “City Square”): buses 15, 16, 16A, 72, 86, X6 and X11
- “Pickering St Canal Road” (only towards “City Square”): buses 15, 72, X6 and X11
- “Willow Road” (only towards “City Square”): buses 19, 19A, 49, 50 and 50A
Pages for these routes: bus X11, bus X6, bus 1, bus 4, bus 7A, bus 7S, bus 14, bus 15, bus 16, bus 16A, bus 19, bus 19A, bus 24, bus 33, bus 34, bus 42, bus 49, bus 50, bus 50A, bus 60A, bus 64, bus 65, bus 72, bus 86, bus 91, bus 163, bus 200, bus 201, bus 205, bus 229, bus 253, bus 255.
Passes and concessions
Our page “How to pay for public transport in Leeds” describes tickets, passes and concessions, including any differences between modes of transport.
Questions and answers
Does bus 81 stop at “Crawshaw Park”?
Only in the direction of “City Square”: in the other direction it does not stop there.
Does bus 81 go to “Kirkstall Fire Station”?
Yes, in both directions.
Where can I change from bus 81 to another bus route?
Most routes stop at “City Square” (4, 7, 7A, 7S, 15, 16, 16A, 19, 19A, 24, 42, 49, 50, 50A, 64, 65, 72, 163, 200, 201, 202, 203, 229, 253, 254, 255, X6 and X11) and “Wellington” (4, 15, 16, 16A, 42, 65, 229, 253, 254, 255 and X11). All other stops with connections are listed above.
Checked on 29 September 2026. Source of the route and stops: West Yorkshire Combined Authority (Metro).