Service stations aren’t known for their luxury; if you’re lucky, you might find a Burger King, a WH Smith and a machine full of chewable toothbrushes. But now, the worst motorway services in England have been revealed – and it’s bad news if you’re travelling through Gloucestershire.
Severn View services on the M48 has been ranked the least popular in England. The site, which is owned by Moto and overlooks the Severn Bridge, scored a customer satisfaction rating of 72% in a survey by watchdog Transport Focus.
One customer described it as “tired and overdue a refit”, while another said it is “not very clean” and the restaurant had “flies buzzing about”. Other reviewers described the toilet facilities as “grim”, “falling apart” and “dismal”.
At the other end of the scale, Norton Canes on the M6 Toll in Staffordshire topped the ranking for the second year running in the annual survey, at 99%.
Transport Focus surveyed 11,600 customers for their opinion on subjects such as cleanliness, food and drink range, friendliness of staff and value for money at 111 service areas in England between February and April.
The second lowest ranked service area was Burtonwood on the M62 in Cheshire, where 73% of visitors were satisfied. This was followed by Cullompton on the M5 in Devon (74%), Frankley southbound on the M5 in Worcestershire (75%) and Charnock Richard southbound on the M6 in Lancashire (77%).
Almost two-thirds of services received a satisfaction score of at least 90%. This is despite just 59% of all respondents rating the food or drink they bought as being good value for money.
Transport Focus chief executive Anthony Smith said: “Motorway users tell us they have a good experience when visiting service areas, but it’s clear that many do not feel the experience is good value for money. They want pleasant, well-maintained facilities with good-quality food choices.”
A spokesperson for Moto said Severn View is one of the smallest service areas on the motorway network and scored 90% for the friendliness of its staff.
“The small location means we are limited in the range of brands and services we can offer,” they added. “However, we will be redoubling our efforts in the year ahead to improve the services on offer at Severn View.”
Of course, there are some services we actually look forward to visiting. Gloucester Services, which comes complete with farm shop, is a fave among the HuffPost team.
As is Tebay Services in Cumbria, which comes complete with a farm shop and a cute duck pond.
And of course, there’s Norton Canes services in Staffordshire, where the loos (which, let’s face it, are the most important thing) look like this.
Enjoy your travels!