Worst Service Station?

[M4 Cardiff]

I tend to use MSAs for diesel, toilet and occasionally Maccy's or BK. i.e quick stops generally on longer journeys, given my job does take me around the country quite a lot.

The most important thing to me is how quick and easy the MSA roads are to navigate. Old style ones are generally the best, with the through road paralleling the motorway, or curving round the back, rather than taking a tortuous loop. Even more -points if they are like that off a motorway junction. So Wooley Edge good, Tibshelf bad. Others on the wall of shame for that include Donnington, Beaconsfield, Oxford [ double minus for the awful speed humps] and Cherwell (oh dear, 3 out of 4 for the M40) also as mentioned, Bridgwater, Michael Wood (looks like it used to be a good straight-through one but they turned it into a slalom course). Also, unless I am heading eastbound (or running dangerously low), I'll never use South Mimms because the roundabout alone will add 5 minutes + to the accrued time on a good day.
Maybe I have been lucky, but I have never found toilets to be grossly unsanitary, but then again, I am used to toilets on construction sites......

[KeithW]

If there is a shabbier, poorer excuse for a MSA than a Bridgwater anywhere then I am very thankful I have not had the misfortune to come across it

Durham services gives it a run for its money, parking there is marginally better but the toilets were vile and as far as I could see the staff at the McDonalds were too busy chatting to each other to serve anyone, ended buying a coffee and sandwich at the filling station.

[lefthandedspanner]

Blyth services on the A1(M) has to be one of the shabbiest, most depressing places I've ever had the misfortune to stop.

Cambridge services on the A14 is not bad, but getting out is a challenge - the signage takes you on a real magical mystery tour.

[darkcape]

Cambridge services on the A14 is not bad, but getting out is a challenge - the signage takes you on a real magical mystery tour.

Cambridge is getting quite bad - most rush hour evenings there are queues off the NB slip road to get in to the services, mainly because the lorries take a while to park or find a spot, or park ON the roundabout outside.

I don't have a major problem with services served by a loop road - but they are annoying when only one access into the car park is provided - this is why Cherwell valley struggles so much. Toddington NB is busy as it's the first up the M1 after the M25, and sometimes suffers queues back on to the slip road, as the right-hand lane is signposted for cars, and then everyone uses the first entrance into the park instead of spreading between several entrances. If you use the left-hand lane, signposted for lorries, you can skip the queue and enter the car park through a second entrance - however I've been caught by that when the lorries are also queuing to park.

I turned into Donington on Saturday to fuel up, only to realise the fuel is BP and I have a Shell fuelcard, so the loop made it very easy to nip back out again (Shell is at LFE of course).

[Robert Kilcoyne]

For ripping people off, Todhills near Gretna is one of the worst. Petrol is 25 pence a litre more than in Carlisle, and you'd have to be pretty desperate to get petrol there, considering you can pull off at jct 45 and get petrol in Gretna 4 miles away.

I agree that you would have to be very short of fuel indeed to use either of the Todhills petrol stations on the M6. If you are prepared to come off at Junction 44 (which is only two miles south of Todhills) there is cheap petrol at Asda, which is little more than half a mile away off the A689 towards Workington. There is also cheap petrol at Morrisons, about one and a half miles along the A7 towards Carlisle city centre, but the A7 Kingstown Road can be very busy with several traffic light controlled junctions, notably where the old A74 Parkhouse Road heads towards the retail parks. The Tesco Carlisle superstore is also very handily placed for the M6, less than half a mile from Junction 43. And all three superstores have cafes.

[Herned]

I don't have a major problem with services served by a loop road - but they are annoying when only one access into the car park is provided...

I once spent about 45 minutes trying to get out of Birchanger Green because of the cunning design where traffic leaving the car park wanting fuel meets incoming traffic and it all gets locked up. Took volunteers directing traffic and lots of beeping and dangerous reversing to sort out and a vow never to cross the threshold again

[Halmyre]

Ferrybridge Services, not strictly an MSA but (a) terrible for access, (b) terrible for food and (c) terrible to get back on the motorway.

[owen b]

Ferrybridge Services, not strictly an MSA but (a) terrible for access, (b) terrible for food and (c) terrible to get back on the motorway.

Nearby Barnsdale Bar A1 southbound, also not strictly an MSA, but a) terrible for egress (virtually impossible to get back on the carriageway safely owing to the ludicrously short onslip and very heavy traffic), b) terrible welcome (a grotty sign on the door telling you not even to think about using the toilets unless you buy something), c) post-apocalyptic buildings and parking. I didn't choose to stay and risk trying the food so I can't report on that. I had no idea just how far it had declined since its heyday several decades ago.

[wrinkly]

(c) terrible to get back on the motorway.

In which direction?

[Blatso]

I find Stirling Services to be horrendous, small and not much to do, plus Stirling and Falkirk are not that far away for cheaper fuel (Stirling ~5 mins, Falkirk 10) and cheaper food in Denny (5 mins along the road if you want a takeaway), Stirling and Falkirk (if you stay on the M9 that is).

Best, in my opinion, is Abington on the M74/A74(M). Love stopping there for a break and there is a really nice noodle place there as well.

[Halmyre]

(c) terrible to get back on the motorway.

In which direction?

Any bloody direction...

In my haste to get away I ended up on the M62 westbound instead of the A1 southbound. I swore I would never darken its door again.

Two days later I was heading northbound and saw a sign for services. Turned off and...oh no, I'm here again. Yorkshire's answer to the Hotel California.

[KeithW]

Ferrybridge Services, not strictly an MSA but (a) terrible for access, (b) terrible for food and (c) terrible to get back on the motorway.

Ferrybridge is in fact a proper MSA and is signed from both the A1(M) and M62. It is still easily accessible from the M62 but since the A1(M) upgrade its now a little more convoluted to get to from the A1(M) southbound and back on northbound but its hardly in the league of Cherwell or Birchangher Green. I agree about the cafeteria food but there is an M&S Simply Food and Greggs plus I get can get a decent coffee from Costa. Equally importantly I can rely on finding a parking space even on a bank holiday weekend. Its also reasonably secure as there is always at least one Police car there. The Highways Agency and police seem to use it as an impromptu operating centre.

I cant recall ever taking over than a minute or so to get in and out. Access is in fact FAR better than Wetherby.

[KeithW]

(c) terrible to get back on the motorway.

In which direction?

Any bloody direction...

In my haste to get away I ended up on the M62 westbound instead of the A1 southbound. I swore I would never darken its door again.

Two days later I was heading northbound and saw a sign for services. Turned off and...oh no, I'm here again. Yorkshire's answer to the Hotel California.

I cant quite see how you could fail to get back on the A1 Southbound again. All you have to do is exit the services onto the roundabout and take the well signed second exit left. This is in fact the original A1 and has been unchanged since 1985. To get to the M62 westbound you must have driven past the correct turn. That said I dislike that roundabout as the sight lines when joining it are terrible.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.69436 ... 6656?hl=en

[KeithW]

Ferrybridge Services, not strictly an MSA but (a) terrible for access, (b) terrible for food and (c) terrible to get back on the motorway.

Nearby Barnsdale Bar A1 southbound, also not strictly an MSA, but a) terrible for egress (virtually impossible to get back on the carriageway safely owing to the ludicrously short onslip and very heavy traffic), b) terrible welcome (a grotty sign on the door telling you not even to think about using the toilets unless you buy something), c) post-apocalyptic buildings and parking. I didn't choose to stay and risk trying the food so I can't report on that. I had no idea just how far it had declined since its heyday several decades ago.

Barnsdale Bar is not an MSA in any shape or form simply because its not on a motorway. It was originally one of the Fortes Autogrill sites built in 1960 as a sort of mini MSA for A roads. It has a twin on the A34. It was opened in 1960 so is an old cramped site that has been in decline for 30 years. Now its nothing more than a roadside cafe and shabby mote, a sad state for a place that was once a major services with a rather nice hotel/bar and restaurant. I do not expect it to survive for very much longer.

[Halmyre]

In which direction?

Any bloody direction...

In my haste to get away I ended up on the M62 westbound instead of the A1 southbound. I swore I would never darken its door again.

Two days later I was heading northbound and saw a sign for services. Turned off and...oh no, I'm here again. Yorkshire's answer to the Hotel California.

I cant quite see how you could fail to get back on the A1 Southbound again. All you have to do is exit the services onto the roundabout and take the well signed second exit left. This is in fact the original A1 and has been unchanged since 1985. To get to the M62 westbound you must have driven past the correct turn. That said I dislike that roundabout as the sight lines when joining it are terrible.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.69436 ... 6656?hl=en

M62 *eastbound* I should have said. Looking at the map I'm not clear how I managed it but it was several years ago and my memory is hazy.

[KeithW]

M62 *eastbound* I should have said. Looking at the map I'm not clear how I managed it but it was several years ago and my memory is hazy.

That I can understand as its the first exit off the roundabout after leaving the services. In fact if the Doncaster bypass is especially screwed up this can be the fastest route. There have been times when heading east on the M62 to Rawcliffe and then south on the M18 has been 40 minutes quicker despite being 8 miles longer and was a lot less stressful than the Darrington to Redhouse bit of the A1.

[Moore_O]

I think I read most of the thread, and was surprised not to see Medway nominated.

Medway Services, by the criteria listed by other posters, seems only to succeed in being relatively easy to get in and out of, with none of the usual convoluted labyrinthine access roads and terrible illegible signage (why is it always so bad?).

Once inside, however, it's like being trapped in a vast, stinking urinal. Every surface looks and feels filthy. The doors are broken, the floor is broken, half the windows are broken (passing underneath the 'flyover' section on the M2, it honestly looks as if it's derelict).

I wonder if anyone has spent any meaningful money on maintenance there since it was opened.

[Robert Kilcoyne]

I find Stirling Services to be horrendous, small and not much to do, plus Stirling and Falkirk are not that far away for cheaper fuel (Stirling ~5 mins, Falkirk 10) and cheaper food in Denny (5 mins along the road if you want a takeaway), Stirling and Falkirk (if you stay on the M9 that is).

Best, in my opinion, is Abington on the M74/A74(M). Love stopping there for a break and there is a really nice noodle place there as well.

Stirling Services does have some lovely views towards Stirling Castle and the Ochil Hills, but I would agree that access to the services is awful, as you have to turn off either the M9 or the M80 and then negotiate a very busy roundabout with no less than seven exits.

I have stopped at Abington on several occasions, and it is very pleasant.

[Robert Kilcoyne]

Barnsdale Bar is not an MSA in any shape or form simply because its not on a motorway. It was originally one of the Fortes Autogrill sites built in 1960 as a sort of mini MSA for A roads. It has a twin on the A34. It was opened in 1960 so is an old cramped site that has been in decline for 30 years. Now its nothing more than a roadside cafe and shabby mote, a sad state for a place that was once a major services with a rather nice hotel/bar and restaurant. I do not expect it to survive for very much longer.

I would guess that the lack of investment in the current Barnsdale Bar site is influenced by the likelihood that the A1 will be upgraded to D3M between Redhouse and Darrington and the upgrade would probably require the demolition of the current site. A new MSA could be built, maybe at the point where the A639 and A6201 meet the current A1.

[Blatso]

I find Stirling Services to be horrendous, small and not much to do, plus Stirling and Falkirk are not that far away for cheaper fuel (Stirling ~5 mins, Falkirk 10) and cheaper food in Denny (5 mins along the road if you want a takeaway), Stirling and Falkirk (if you stay on the M9 that is).

Best, in my opinion, is Abington on the M74/A74(M). Love stopping there for a break and there is a really nice noodle place there as well.

Stirling Services does have some lovely views towards Stirling Castle and the Ochil Hills, but I would agree that access to the services is awful, as you have to turn off either the M9 or the M80 and then negotiate a very busy roundabout with no less than seven exits.

I have stopped at Abington on several occasions, and it is very pleasant.

To be fair, I don't usually stop at Stirling as my house is 5-10 mins up the A872. I think I've only been once as my mum and I were early for something in Bannockburn and it's the nearest Costa to us for a coffee. The roundabout isn't that bad. I can think of worse bottlenecks in this area at rush hour than the Pirnhall (Craig's Roundabout on the A9 comes to mind)