The present Silkstone Common railway station, which opened by

British Rail British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...

on 14 May 1983 serves the village of

Silkstone Common Silkstone Common is a village in the metropolitan borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are th ...

, near

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham. In N ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The station is west of on the

Penistone Line The Penistone Line is operated by Northern Trains in the West Yorkshire Metro and Travel South Yorkshire areas of northern England. It connects Huddersfield and Sheffield via Penistone and Barnsley, serving many rural communities. Metrocards ( ...

between and

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

History

The original station, simply known as "Silkstone", was opened on 1 November 1855 and rebuilt on the same site in the last quarter of the 19th century in the "Double Pavilion" style favoured by the

Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) was formed in 1847 when the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway joined with authorised but unbuilt railway companies, forming a proposed network from Manchester to Grimsb ...

. The former station master's house remains towards the Penistone end of the present platform. This is now a private residence. The present station is the third to serve the village. The station is built over the tunnel through which passed the Silkstone Wagonway, an early rail link from the coal pits in Silkstone Common, via a rope-hauled incline and the village of

Silkstone Silkstone is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, between the towns of Barnsley and Penistone. The parish includes the village of Silk ...

to the

Barnsley Canal The Barnsley Canal is a canal that ran from Barnby Basin, through Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England to a junction with the Aire and Calder Navigation near Wakefield, West Yorkshire. It was built in the 1790s, to provide a transport link from c ...

. Little can be seen from the station, but looking at the wall opposite the platform a small rise in the coping stones is detectable which coincides with the arch of the tunnel. The station closed in June 1959 with the withdrawal of the Penistone–Barnsley–Doncaster stopping services, but was reopened in May 1983, after Sheffield–Huddersfield services had been diverted via the route.

Facilities

The station is unstaffed and has only basic amenities, including a waiting shelter, bench seating, timetable poster boards and CCTV cameras. No customer display screens or automated announcements are available. Tickets must be purchased in advance or from the conductor on board the train. No step-free access is available to the platform (pedestrian access is via steps from Knabb Lane or a

barrow crossing There are around 6,000 level crossings in the United Kingdom, of which about 1,500 are public highway crossings. This number is gradually being reduced as the risk of accidents at level crossings is considered high. The director of the UK Rail ...

from the car park on the other side of the line). There is now a visual display showing train times and approximate arrival of trains, and in addition announcements, both visual and by speaker about what time the train will arrive and in addition if there are any delays. There is also wheelchair access from Knabbs Lane at the side of what used to be the station house. More recently an automated ticket machine has been located inside the new shelter, whereby tickets can be purchased via credit, debit and student cards, as well as promise to pay.

Services

On Monday to Saturday, trains operate hourly each way, towards Huddersfield and Barnsley/Sheffield; a two-hourly frequency operates on Sundays.

References

External links

Railway stations in Barnsley DfT Category F2 stations Railway stations opened by British Rail Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1855 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1959 Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1983 Northern franchise railway stations Reopened railway stations in Great Britain {{Yorkshire-Humber-railstation-stub