The station was opened on 23 December 1940 jointly by the Great Western Railway and the London, Midland and Scottish Railway. The station served the Shell Thornton Aero Engine Laboratory, which was responsible for developing fuels and oils for the aircraft of the Royal Air Force. A short distance from the station was a signal box. This controlled all of the sidings used for freight. Shell stopped using rail as a method of transportation of goods, and subsequently, the sidings were removed. Eventually, the signal box was dismantled and donated to the Embsay & Bolton Abbey Steam Railway. Today, the signals for this line and station are controlled at Helsby and Ellesmere Portsignal boxes, operated by Network Rail. The station was originally earmarked for closure under what is known today as the Beeching Axe, a report created by Dr. Beeching entitled "The Reshaping of British Railways". This was a report commissioned by the government to find out how money could be saved, as use of the railways began to decline. Station usage statistics for 2004-5 showed 40 passengers using the station, less than one per week. Passenger numbers began to increase at the station in 2005-6, with 130 people using it in 2005-06. This rose sharply to 326 in 2006-2007, despite the same rail services being operated. In January 2020 the station was named as the joint quietest in the UK, alongside Denton Station in Greater Manchester, with just 46 entries and exits in the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.
Facilities
At this station there are covered shelters, with three metal seats on either platform. There is a payphone located on the Helsby platform. A gently rising footpath leads from the road to a flight of 48 steps with 2 rest landings and a handrail onto a footbridge. From the footbridge to the left, the first flight of 30 steps with rest landing and handrail leads to the Helsby platform, and the second flight of 30 steps with rest landing and handrail leads to the Ellesmere Port platform. The station is definitely not accessible for people with mobility problems. The booking office is still extant at the Ellesmere Port platform, but has been closed for some time. It now houses the electrics for the station and is boarded up. Although not controlled by Northern Trains, the station does have CCTV monitored by the security services at the Essar oil refinery. There is limited car parking at the entrance of the station. The station is unstaffed with no ticket office so passengers buy tickets from a conductor on board the train.
Services
Three trains per day call at the station in each direction. Two of the Helsby-bound trains continue to Warrington Bank Quay, Manchester Victoria and whilst the first morning train of the day starts from Liverpool Lime Street and the afternoon one from Leeds. The Saturday service is effectively the same as the Monday - Friday equivalent, except that all services begin and terminate at Helsby. There is no service on Sundays. A Normal service operates on most Bank Holidays. The North Cheshire Rail User Group, supports and actively campaigns for an improved service at this station and for this railway line.
The station is located on Oil Sites Road, a private road owned by Essar Oil. This is now closed to motor vehicles, except for access to the site. The original owner, Shell, had cited increased commercial traffic to its refinery and the number of public vehicles using the road, recklessly in some cases, as reasons for closure. The road previously also allowed quick access to the villages of Ince and Elton from Ellesmere Port and beyond. Although it is theoretically accessible by foot, it involves a long walk from either Ellesmere Port, Ince or Elton. There are no bus or taxi services at this station due to the access restrictions.
