Motorway Services

FuriousGeorge · 29 Sep 2009 at 14:52

Some services have marks and spencers in - these certainly used to only charge the same as the high street ones, not sure if its still the case though....

Given that I cry everytime I go to the pump anyway (170 miles from 45litres of V+, sob) I am numbed to the increase of a few pence!)

Biohazard · 29 Sep 2009 at 14:54

Hate services with a passion, fuel up there only if I have too.

Use them to sleep thats about it.

Dano · 29 Sep 2009 at 14:57

FuriousGeorge said:
Some services have marks and spencers in - these certainly used to only charge the same as the high street ones, not sure if its still the case though....

Given that I cry everytime I go to the pump anyway (170 miles from 45litres of V+, sob) I am numbed to the increase of a few pence!)

Place I work at certainly charges more than the M&S in town.

#Chri5# · 29 Sep 2009 at 15:00

The 5minutesfrom website is good - the pub "opposite" Cherwell Valley on the M40 does excellent grub. Better quality, bigger portions and cheaper than the services.

I'd rather push my car home than pay services prices for fuel

Seriously, I fill up locally before any mile-munching trips. Plus I always make an effort to take some water from home and I carry snacks in the car - that habbit started when I spent 5 1/2 hours stationary on the M40 after an accident...

Biohazard · 29 Sep 2009 at 15:01

FuriousGeorge said:
Given that I cry everytime I go to the pump anyway (170 miles from 45litres of V+, sob) I am numbed to the increase of a few pence!)

Ouch, what you powering?

I'd cry having to fuel up that often without a massive increase in pay!!

rypt · 29 Sep 2009 at 15:13

Bear said:
But the high street doesnt have to fork out huge amounts of cash to create access roads, parking and large amounts of land for the concessions. This obviously has to be paid for and recouped.

Isn't all this paid for by tax payers money for the MSA?

Howard · 29 Sep 2009 at 15:22

I know, it's ridiculous. I just got back from Birmingham and stopped for some lunch at Warwick Services on the M40. Ordered my BK meal, got £4-5 of change ready - about all I had, and what a BK whopper meal usually costs. I was charged about £6.50. "er... can I pay on card please?"

:mad:

Dorje · 29 Sep 2009 at 15:28

Only really stop at services to visit the loo and stretch the legs a little at the same time. I normally take a drink and a couple snacks before I set off anyway.

If I do decide to eat from one the service stations, it's one with KFC as they charge highstreet prices iirc (and they have the Wicked Zinger Tower Meal

). I never go to BK highstreet or not, rarely get fast food anyway.

MrSix · 29 Sep 2009 at 15:52

thewanted said:
I thought £2.45 for a bag of wine gums was a particularly special price.

omg...that just made me crave wine gums like crazy.

brb.

Muffin` · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:04

Howard said:
I know, it's ridiculous. I just got back from Birmingham and stopped for some lunch at Warwick Services on the M40. Ordered my BK meal, got £4-5 of change ready - about all I had, and what a BK whopper meal usually costs. I was charged about £6.50. "er... can I pay on card please?"

I got a XL bacon tripple cheese burger meal from some services near brum... £10!!! But expenses *** and all that :cool:

But I do agree with Fox, they are there at the pleasure of the government because we all know a government run service station would be dull and never pass a health inspection exactly why they opened them up. It dosen't give them the right to start open season on our wallets.

FuriousGeorge · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:07

Biohazard said:
Ouch, what you powering?

I'd cry having to fuel up that often without a massive increase in pay!!

1995 Impreza STi V2. running 300bhp ish

Used to be have a higher ratio gearbox on it which let me get around 230 to a tank on average(!), that went pop and now theres some rediculously ratioed box in it which does 3500 revs at about 70mph! I can literally see the fuel gauge go down as I drive along!

I am looking at changing it for something slightly more economical!

I get around · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:14

You do get bum raped in services, I always stock up before a long journey.
Occasionally I end up stopping for a bk or something just for convinience, but usually this is because I'm driving longer journeys with mates who I can get to pay for me

Lum · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:18

Well my work are clamping down on expenses, for an overnighter I'm now limited to £15 for my evening meal and morning breakfast (only exception to this is if I have the meal at the hotel on the hotel business card) so now I get to drive straight through for 4+ hours hoping to reach the hotel before they stop serving food which varies bewteen 9 and 10. Just a butty and a drink will wipe out a third of my food allowance for that night.

One thing to consider though, slightly in defence of the services is that all their staff must have to be paid a wage that allows them to run a car, surely?

Demon · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:21

If you are bright enough to realise they are ripping you off, you should be bright enough to not use them..

What next? "OMG, cash machines in pubs, they're a total rip off"..

/sarcasm..

Lum · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:33

But cash machines in pubs aren't put there using public money as a safety measure.

What I do like but you very rarely see is a "Local services" sign. This will take you off into town to somewhere they deem to be a suitable location. There's one opposite Hopwood park services on the M42 (J2) which is just a Texaco garage and is pretty crap, but on the A38 near Plymouth, following the sign takes you Lee Mill which has a really nice (and cheap) little restaraunt.

OTOH, on the M62 J36 (Goole) there is a Shell + Hotel + McDonalds almost right on the roundabout which is not signed at all, at least not until McDonalds put up a huge great M sign so tall you can see it from the motorway.

Dr Who · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:45

Motorway services are generally only used by unprepared, therefore, if you get ripped off price wise, you only have yourself to blame.

Plenty of supermarkets just off many motorway exits, with good planning, you can save money on food and petrol, or buy befoer you leave for even better savings (dont have to do 2-3 extra miles coming off and back onto the m'way)

Howard · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:54

Muffin` said:
I got a XL bacon tripple cheese burger meal from some services near brum... £10!!! But expenses *** and all that

Normally I'd only use a service station if I was travelling for work and thus expenses eff tea double you, but I was sodding hungry earlier

Lum · 29 Sep 2009 at 16:59

Dr Who said:
Motorway services are generally only used by unprepared

Or by business travellers (who may or may not be able to claim it back on expenses)

Or by people on a tight timescale.

Oh and don't forget that other scam that services run, free meals for coach drivers, to make the coach driver stop there and dump 40 or 50 people into a service station for half an hour, all of whom have to pay and have no say in where they stop.

jamoor · 29 Sep 2009 at 17:29

TBH I have never actually bought anything from a Services as they are all a rip off, if you decide to regulate them, how?

Will the government set prices for all the food?

Also, I only stop if I'm tired, which is pretty rare.

Lum · 29 Sep 2009 at 17:36

jamoor said:
if you decide to regulate them, how?

Will the government set prices for all the food?

Max price of, say, RRP + 10% for off the shelf products and branded food outlets such as Burger King and M&S.

For their own brand hot food it's a bit more complicated, because you couldn't just go 110% of the price of the nearest comparable food supplier because then they'd have to charge the same price as the nearest comprehensive school. Not sure what you'd do there.