Best and Worst UK Motorway Service Stations Revealed 2021
With the summer holidays having just kicked off, UK service stations are braced for what will surely be one of their busiest summers, with two thirds of Brits planning to holiday on British soil this year and swap their trains and planes for automobiles.
In fact, Google searches for ‘last minute UK holidays’, ‘UK beach holidays’, and ‘caravan holidays UK’ have seen a 1,100%, 140%, and 120% increase respectively over the past 90 days. As such, service stations are in high demand and as we all know, some are better than others.
To help ensure you don’t get caught short, Northgate have analysed the facilities available at motoway stations across the country to provide a definitive ranking of the best and worst on offer. The ranking considers multiple factors such as parking, EV points, playgrounds, showers and eateries, to score each station out of 100 to help travellers plan the perfect driving route.
Key findings:
- The M40 is the best motorway for a service station break with an average score of 72.4
- The M23 in Surrey is the worst motorway to stop on with an average station score of 33.9
- Service station provider ‘Extra Services’ is the consistently best station provider with an average score of 67.5 across their sites
- An impressive 97% of service stations offer charging points for electric cars
Top 5 service stations:
| Station | Score | Motorway |
| Cobham | 86.6 | M25 |
| Beaconsfield | 83.9 | M40 |
| Peterborough | 72.6 | A1 (M) |
| Cambridge | 69.5 | M14 |
| Strensham | 69.4 | M5 |
Bottom 5 service stations:
| Station | Score | Motorway |
| Carnforth | 28.9 | M6 |
| Cairn Lodge | 28.9 | M74 |
| Pease Pottage | 32.5 | M23 |
| Bothwell | 34.2 | M74 |
| Sandbach | 37 | M6 |
