Moving in Thorlby: what to know first
Thorlby is farms and a few houses along Sour Lane, a 60 mph lane with a 7.5-tonne weight limit. A single-lane road with the same limit branches off it, and Thorlby Swing Bridge over the canal, bridge 174, carries only a service road closed to motor vehicles, so it is not a way in.
There is a small free car park for about eight cars nearby, but most homes here are farmhouses or cottages with yards. Say whether the van can use your yard, and how far it is from the door.
Thorlby: the local picture
The lane through the hamlet has a history of its own: Sour Lane is recorded as a former turnpike road run by the Keighley and Kendal Trust. Its oldest buildings face it. Bay Horse Farmhouse was an inn in the late 18th century before becoming a farmhouse, and Manor Farm Cottage is a farmhouse of 1782 with a basket-arched doorway and an initialled datestone; both are listed. Until 1866 Thorlby was a township of Skipton parish.
Around it the ground rises into small rounded hills, part of the Skipton drumlin field, with Langer Hill, Cock Hill and Hoober Hill close by, and Thorlby Bridge, a movable bridge, crosses the Leeds and Liverpool Canal nearby. For a farmhouse or cottage here, say how close the van can get to the door, and measure the larger pieces against the old doorways.
How the van gets to Thorlby
The A65 Skipton Road, a 60 mph trunk road, passes close to Thorlby, and Sour Lane leaves it for the hamlet; the lane itself is 60 mph with a 7.5-tonne weight limit. From Bradford the van comes up the A629 to Skipton and takes the A65 west towards Gargrave, roughly 35 to 45 minutes. The 580 bus between Skipton and Settle runs past the hamlet.
The drive from Bradford is roughly 35 to 45 minutes. That is an estimate, not a timed run, and traffic changes it.
Man and van services near Thorlby
Each service below links to its Skipton page, which covers how the job works in and around Skipton.
House Removals
One- and two-bed homes moved with a driver and a Transit LWB van; bigger homes go in two loads.
Learn moreFlat & Apartment Removals
Lifts, stairs, loading bays and building paperwork planned before the van arrives.
Learn moreFurniture & Large Item Transport
Wardrobes, tables and bulky items moved from A to B without a full removals package.
Learn moreAppliance Delivery
Washing machines, fridges and cookers moved, secured and placed in your kitchen.
Learn moreMarketplace & eBay Collection
Bought it on Marketplace, eBay or Gumtree? We collect from the seller and bring it to you.
Learn moreStudent Removals
Halls, shared houses and home again, priced for a room's worth of belongings.
Learn moreEvery service we offer near Thorlby
All 11 services run to Thorlby, each with its own page.
Common Thorlby routes
- Thorlby → SkiptonSour Lane to the A65 and east into town
- Thorlby → Gargravenorth-west along the A65
- Thorlby → Bradfordroughly 35 to 45 minutes, round the Skipton bypass and down the A629
Frequently asked questions: man with a van in Thorlby
Stirton or Thorlby: are they the same village?
No, two small settlements that share one civil parish, Stirton with Thorlby. Thorlby is the group on Sour Lane by the A65; Stirton lies a little to the east. Give the house name and the full BD23 3 postcode, such as BD23 3LL.
Can the van come over Thorlby Bridge from the canal side?
No. Thorlby Swing Bridge, number 174, is closed to motor vehicles. The van comes in from the A65 by Sour Lane.
Is there a bus from Thorlby to Skipton?
The 580 bus between Skipton and Settle runs past the hamlet, which helps if someone is travelling separately on moving day.
Where the local details on this page come from
Checked on 1 October 2026 against:
- Postcode lookup (postcodes.io, ONS data): BD23 3LL is in Mid Craven ward, North Yorkshire, parish of Stirton with Thorlby
- OpenStreetMap node 29768863: Thorlby (place=village); map data extract around it (checked 2026-09-30): Sour Lane (tertiary, 60 mph, maxweight 7.5 t, described as a former turnpike road operated by the Keighley and Kendal Trust), A65 Skipton Road (trunk, 60 mph), The Bay Horse Inn, Langer Hill, Cock Hill, Hoober Hill (part of Skipton drumlin field), Thorlby Bridge (movable) over the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, bus 580 Skipton to Settle
- Stirton with Thorlby (Wikipedia): civil parish including Stirton and Thorlby, population 204 in 2011, a township of Skipton parish until it became a civil parish in 1866
- Listed buildings in Stirton with Thorlby (Wikipedia, from the National Heritage List for England): Bay Horse Farmhouse, late 18th century, an inn later a farmhouse; Manor Farm Cottage, 1782, central doorway with basket arch and initialled datestone; Stirton House and other listed buildings in Stirton to the east
- OpenStreetMap map data around Thorlby (checked 2026-09-30): A65, Cock Hill, Hoober Hill, Langer Hill, Skipton Road, Sour Lane, Thorlby Bridge
- Route estimate from OpenStreetMap road data, Bradford city centre to Thorlby (checked 2026-09-30): Barry Street (A6181), Westgate (B6144), White Abbey Road (B6144), Whetley Hill (B6144), Toller Lane (B6144), Bingley Road (B6269), Cottingley Cliffe Road (B6269), Bradford Old Road (B6146), Cottingley New Road (B6146), Bradford Road (B6265), Sir Fred Hoyle Way (A650), Aire Valley Road (A650), Hard Ings Road (A650), A629, Aire Valley Bypass (A629), Skipton Road (A629), Keighley Road (A629), Rotary Way (A629), Skipton Road (A65), Sour Lane
- OpenStreetMap map data (API extract): Sour Lane (60 mph, maxweight 7.5 t), a one-lane unclassified road (maxweight 7.5 t), Thorlby Swing Bridge (bridge 174, motor vehicles no), car park (capacity 8, free), about 44 buildings, many agricultural
- A65 road (Wikipedia): runs from Leeds via Kirkstall, Horsforth, Yeadon, Guiseley, Ilkley and Skipton towards Settle and Kendal; Addingham bypass opened 1991, Draughton bypass December 1991, Settle and Giggleswick bypass 1988; plans for a bypass round Gargrave