MOTORWAY service stations have come a long way since they were first launched on the unsuspecting British motorist in the 60s.

At one end of the scale you have organic home-cooked food and farm shops selling local produce and at the other end is Hartshead Moor East, near Bradford in West Yorkshire, unfortunately for the second time running.

In a survey conducted by the watchdog Transport Focus, the service area located on the eastbound side of the M62 between Manchester and Leeds ranked as the least popular among 120 different locations. Nearly 31,000 visitors participated in the survey.

This service station, owned by Welcome Break and situated on the busy Pennines route, received the lowest overall satisfaction rating at 84%. Visitors surveyed were also least likely to recommend it to a friend.

Welcome Break workers defended the site, claiming it’s “a lot better than it was”. Car park cleaner Janette Maud, 60, said: “They must have come on a bad day,” reported the Mirror.

This ‘bad day‘ was somewhat confirmed by Transport Focus who mentioned that the planned upgrades to the toilets appeared ongoing at the time of their visit.

The watchdog said: “Unfortunately, the works were still underway during the survey period and, for some of the time, [the site] had portable toilets in place.”

Despite these issues, the satisfaction rating for the services had improved by four percentage points compared to the previous year’s survey.

Perhaps once the khazis are sorted we might see them marching to the top.

Welcome Break’s services on the other side of the road didn’t fair much better. Hartshead Moor West also received poor ratings and was among the five least popular motorway service areas.

Transport Focus highlighted that investments in facilities by operators can significantly impact customer experience. Birchanger Green services near Bishop’s Stortford in Hertfordshire recorded the most substantial increase in overall visitor satisfaction, rising from 83% in 2022 to 96% this year.

At the other end of the scale Moto’s Rugby services on the M6 in Warwickshire topped the rankings for the second consecutive year. This service area was the only one to achieve a 100% visitor satisfaction score, with high ratings for its food and drink offerings, toilet facilities, and friendly staff.

Service stations across the country have been changing as customer needs develop. Incredibly Wetherspoons opened a pub on the M40 motorway in 2014, causing widespread moral panic.

Overall, the average satisfaction score for all visitors to motorway services increased to 94%, up from 93% the previous year. Anthony Smith, chief executive of Transport Focus, said despite this increase, there was ‘still room for improvement’. He noted that: “Making sure the range of food and drink on offer is good value.”

As for Swift Half, anywhere serving up hot sausage rolls at 3am gets our vote.