Thorne South railway station
| Company type | Railway station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rail transport |
| Founded | 1866-09-10 |
| Headquarters | Thorne , England |
Area served | South Yorkshire, England |
| Owner | Northern Trains |
Thorne South railway station provides rail access to the market town of Thorne in South Yorkshire, England. Positioned to the north of Doncaster along the South Humberside Main Line, this station is operated by Northern Trains. It consists of two platforms equipped with simple passenger shelters and operates without on-site staff.
In earlier decades, particularly before the mid-1970s, Thorne South was a more complex facility. It featured an island platform serving westbound trains, connected by a subway, along with wooden station buildings and protective canopies. Notably, the platforms were located slightly further east than their current positions. A signal box remained in use until resignalling was completed in the early 1980s.
The town’s other station, Thorne North railway station, caters to services running towards Hull.
History
The station began partial operations on 10 September 1866 and was fully opened by 1 October 1866 under the auspices of the South Yorkshire Railway and River Dun Company. Initially named simply Thorne—identical to the other local station managed by the Great Northern Railway—it was incorporated into the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway in 1874, which later rebranded as the Great Central Railway in 1897. Some historical timetables referred to it as "Thorne for Newbridge". After the implementation of the Grouping Act, both stations became part of the London and North Eastern Railway. To distinguish between them, this station was renamed Thorne South on 1 July 1923, while its counterpart took on the name Thorne North.
Facilities
Passengers can purchase tickets from a single machine that accepts card payments only. On the northern side of the station lies a partially surfaced area providing limited free parking spaces for rail users. Information about train times is available through timetable posters and electronic Departure Boards located on both platforms and near the entrance; audio announcements supplement these displays. A fully accessible footbridge with ramps, installed by Network Rail in July 2013, links the two platforms. This structure replaced a previously unsafe barrow crossing after a passenger injury occurred in January 2013. The new bridge was erected during a line closure necessitated by repair work following the Hatfield Colliery spoil tip collapse.
Service
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Northern Trains maintained an hourly service from Monday to Saturday between and , with no trains running on Sundays. Presently, service frequency has been reduced to one train every two hours in both directions, still without Sunday operations. Key departure times toward Scunthorpe include 06:59, 09:00, 11:58, 13:58, 15:58, 17:58, 19:58, and 22:10; while departures toward Doncaster occur at 08:08, 10:08, 13:08, 15:08, 17:08, 19:08, 21:08, and 23:08. Additionally, one daily TransPennine Express service between Cleethorpes and Liverpool Lime Street calls here—westbound early morning at 06:08 and eastbound late evening at 22:52.
In February 2013, a landslip at Hatfield Colliery obstructed the line northeast of Hatfield and Stainforth station heading toward Thorne, causing service suspensions until reopening in July that year.