We all know Gloucester and Tebay are the best motorway services in the U.K, but what, in your opinion makes you wish you could just p*** yourself en-route and never stop at? I’ll start (cos I’m here) with Taunton Deane Northbound. 7:20 on a Bank Holiday weekend and the only food available is McDonalds and stale sandwiches in that well known eatery, WHSmith! Go…

by Sunday-Diver

45 comments

  2. Other places might have lower lows, but the persistent naffness of Lancaster surely makes it a contender. I only stop there if I *really* can’t wait until Tebay to go to the loo.

  4. Tebay is massively overrated imo; overpriced and run down..

    Rheged just off Junction 40 is better imo, Skelton lake is decent too up near Leeds.. also worth a mention is Killington Lake at 37, great views and clean toilets but only offers maccies, WHSmith & costa like Taunton, practically the same with all Roadchefs..

    Moto used to be good but have been badly run post covid. EG & Welcome break are always clean and offer a decent variety of food (even if it is just fast food crap)

    worst for me is sandbach, it’s a roadchef again so only offers a maccies really but it’s always absolutely rammed both North & South..

  8. I think a better question is; are any of the motorway services not a run down shit hole

  9. Kinross. A sad Costa and a Greggs in what feels like a scene from 28 Days Later.

    Or Milton Keynes, but then I was only there at 3am on a Megabus, so I think anything looks shit under those conditions.

  11. M50 between Monmouth and Ross on Wye northbound – absolute shithole.

    Went into the gents to find a well shat adult nappy in the only working sink at 11am on a Tuesday.

  13. I stopped for coffee at branded chef, I was going into Kent to Herne bay and some local group asked if was with the ‘dogger’…. Left speedily after

  14. I hate saying Lancaster, but Lancaster. It has a permanent whiff of that industrial cleaner they use for the bathrooms

  15. I always used to stop at Taunton Deane southbound on my way to visit my sister in Plymouth, and I found it… okay. There’s a pretty grim one further down the M5 though – can’t remember which, maybe Collumpton? That’s really run down and has a multi story car park for some reason, despite being the size of a garden shed. Last time I was there, there was an issue with the toilets, and (seemingly multiple) people had shat on the walkway outside.

  17. Come off the M5 at Taunton and two minutes later you’re at the huge Hankridge out of town centre. Plenty of food spots, much better than the services.

  18. Far from the worst, but I’ve never had signal at Wetherby. Make a mid-voyage shite very dull.

  22. Gordano services M5 north bound near Bristol

    Made the mistake of pulling off for one of the kids to use the toilet.

    There was a qué in the carpark for some reason that could’ve been managed with the smallest amount of thought but wasn’t. The design of the motorway exit means any backup spills back onto the motorway but once you’re committed we were stuck.

    40 minutes to get into the place. The Mrs walked with the kids while I waited in the car trying to get into the actual services, feeling sorry for the disabled ambulance Infront that couldn’t do the same.

    Once in it was clear there was just no interest in organising the outgoings traffic which was impacting the whole place and by extension the motorway. No special issues beyond bad design

    In all we probably lost 2 hrs.

    The whole place was shit as well

    Never in a million years will I go back.

    It isn’t actually bottom in the which review.

    But which is wrong. It’s beyond fucked.

    https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/motorway-service-stations/article/best-and-worst-motorway-service-stations-aw3Ww9F9pEIw

  24. I visited one on the M5 back in 2007-8 or something. It was like a post apocalyptic hellscape. Dirty, run down, deserted, largely closed (this was about 8pm on a November Friday evening), and the tea was so terrible I threw it in the bin after one sip I decided to just drive on. It haunts me to this day. A quick google maps search shows it was likely to have been Frankley Services as I was heading for the M54. Wonder if it’s any better now?

  30. God I can’t stand Taunton Deane, for whatever reason it really brings out the worst in people, I’ve had more road rage incidents outside the whsmith than I ever have on the road

  31. I have never been to a service station which hasn’t utterly depressed me and/or made me feel like a need a shower.

  36. I’m sure there’s something that’s technically services on the A303 eastbound, it’s basically a petrol station with an outside toilet and one of those self service Costa coffee machines.

  37. South Mimms. Not the services itself but the journey off the motorway to there is a pita. Also getting back on the motorway is a pita.

  43. None of you people have been to Barton Park on the A1(M) and it shows. Genuinely beggars belief and feels like something out of a horror film. Used to get mentioned in the Viz all the time.

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