It is 10 miles (16 km) from Bristol Temple Meads and is the last station on the English side before the Severn Tunnel through to Wales.

The station had an extensive goods yard, boasting one of the largest railway communities in the Bristol area, and operated a motorail service to Wales.

In 1928 the original station was reopened on the Severn Beach Line, which allowed passengers and freight to reach Avonmouth Docks, though this only lasted until 1964.

The car park is permanently closed as of 2024 and newly installed locked gates prevent access to the site other than on foot or cycle, for which there are four stands.

[11] Pilning is consistently one of the least-used stations in Britain, recording fewer than 50 annual passengers several times between 1997 and 2015.

[17][18] Due to there being no westbound trains, a fares easement is in place allowing passengers to travel to Severn Tunnel Junction in order to return eastbound to Pilning.

The line, engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, was built as single track 7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm) broad gauge.

[29] GWR chairman Daniel Gooch and other directors visited Pilning in 1884 as part of an inspection tour of the works.

The New Passage branch, including the original station, was closed to passengers the same day, despite requests from local residents that a reduced service continue to operate.

[9]: 112  In 1905 there were 30 staff employed by the station – 14 signalmen, 6 signalmen/porters, 8 porters, a tunnel inspector and the stationmaster – making it one of the largest railway communities in the Bristol area.

Waterproof covers were available to protect cars from the conditions inside the tunnel, while passengers travelled in a coach hauled by the same train.

The opening of the Severn Bridge in 1966, allowing direct road travel between Bristol and South Wales, brought about the end of the service, with the final train running on 6 October 1966.

This allowed trains to travel via the original station at Pilning and avoid congestion along the line via central Bristol.

Trains working from Wales to Avonmouth required elaborate shunting moves – there was no path between the two without reversing – and so the level crossing was frequently closed, leading to traffic jams.

[33]: 21, 115–116 [38] In the early 1900s the nearby village of Severn Beach became a popular seaside resort, with a station opening there in 1922 for trains via Avonmouth.

[38][41][42] The shortness of the platform meant that only two carriages could be accommodated, and so passengers were required to travel in the correct part of the train in order to alight.

[42] The initial service along this loop was nine trains per day on weekdays and four on Sundays, mostly running circular trips to and from Bristol Temple Meads via Clifton Down and Patchway.

[44] Passenger services between Severn Beach and Pilning were withdrawn on 23 November 1964, causing the closure of the Low Level platform.

[33]: 208  The site is now in agricultural use, and the only remnants of the station are level crossing gates: one remaining in situ, the other now used at the Didcot Railway Centre.

[34] During the 1950s a brick building was built on the northern platform, and around the same time the footbridge had its roof and walls removed, leaving users exposed to the elements.

[16] British Rail was split into business-led sectors in the 1980s, at which time operations at Pilning passed to Regional Railways.

[47][48] Bristol-area passenger services were franchised to Wales & West in 1997, which was succeeded by Wessex Trains, an arm of National Express, in 2001.

The Pilning Station Group, founded by local resident Jonathan King in the 1980s, campaigned for an increase in services.

[60][62][63][64] The removal of the footbridge meant that the westbound platform was no longer accessible and thus was closed, with the final train having called on 10 September.

Campaigners alleged that the removal amounted to a closure by stealth, with Network Rail apologising for not consulting residents or conforming to their code of best practice.

[16][67][68] There was subsequently a campaign for Pilning to receive the footbridge from Angel Road, following that station's closure in May 2019, however Network Rail stated that there was no financial justification for replacing the bridge.

[7][10][64][73][74][75] Railway staff have suffered injuries or death at Pilning; in 1893, signalman George Hann sustained severe cuts to the neck and throat after being hit by shards of glass from an unwanted bottle of lemon squash, which had been thrown from a passing train and smashed against the signal box's woodwork.

[82][83] A major incident occurred in 1933, when a London, Midland and Scottish Railway excursion train from Worsley to Barnstaple caught fire after passing through the Severn Tunnel.

While Severn Beach railway station is nearby, Pilning potentially offers much quicker access to Bristol and Wales.

The campaigners note that 25,000 jobs are due to be created in the area as part of the Westgate development, and that a new junction on the M49 motorway could allow for a park and ride-type station "Pilning Parkway".