These are 11 of the least used railway stations in Britain | UK | Travel
Britain’s rail network is widely used, with roughly 4.4 million journeys every single day — yet a clutch of stations barely see a soul. That’s the stark contrast in the Office of Rail and Road’s 2023/24 figures that highlight a handful of near‑silent platforms that feel frozen in time.
Some of these stations sit on ‘parliamentary’ routes, which are run solely to meet a legal requirement and sustained by token services. Others are request stops that few passengers ever request, and some are hamstrung by infrastructure quirks that make stopping awkward. With 1.61 billion passenger journeys in Great Britain recorded by the ORR’s latest data, these are the loneliest of British train stations ranked.
11. Kildonan, Scotland
Kildonan train station is located in the Flow Country of Sutherland, Scotland. It is a single-track railway line connecting Helmsdale on the east coast to Thurso on the north coast.
It was named the least used station in Scotland during the 2023 to 2024 financial year, with 240 passengers, followed close behind by Scotscalder in Caithness, with 242. Altnabreac was third, with 250 passengers.
(Image: Getty)
10. Thorpe Culvert, Lincolnshire
On EMR’s Poacher Line between Boston and Skegness, Thorpe Culvert sees limited off‑peak calls and a seasonal pattern. Beach‑bound trains often skip it, and a tiny rural catchment plus decent road access keep annual usage in the very low hundreds.
The railway line in Thorpe Culvert has experienced flooding in the past, inlcuding one occasion where more than two months of rain fell in just two days.
(Image: Joe Giddens/PA Archive/PA Images)
8. Beasdale, Scotland
Beasdale station, on the West Highland Line, is a request stop located near Druimindarroch, within the Glen Beasdale area of the Highlands. Scotrail manages the station, which serves the surrounding area. According to the ORR’s data, the station recorded just 260 passengers between 2023 and 2024.
Although it is only a single platform set within a dramatic woodland landscape, Beasdale had a short goods siding until the late 1980s.
(Image: Daily Record)
