Motorway Services (1 Viewer)

[The DATeam]

Cannot remember which services it was, but traveling south bound on the M1 we pulled off onto one of the services, followed the signs for caravan parking which took us straight back out on to the the motorway again. As a coach driver, one tip, don't park in the coach bays. I know a lot of coach drivers who will pull up behind vehicles parked in coach bays and go off and have their 45 minute break. If you want to move, hard luck, coach cannot be moved for 45 minutes. Be warned.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Cannot remember which services it was, but traveling south bound on the M1 we pulled off onto one of the services, followed the signs for caravan parking which took us straight back out on to the the motorway again. As a coach driver, one tip, don't park in the coach bays. I know a lot of coach drivers who will pull up behind vehicles parked in coach bays and go off and have their 45 minute break. If you want to move, hard luck, coach cannot be moved for 45 minutes. Be warned.

Coach bays annoy me, well not coach bays but the managing of them compared to hgv bays, park in a coach bay and the parking hitlers are all over you, hgv bays apparently are fair game for anyone not in an hgv it seems.

 

[hilldweller]

I have seen motorhomes in coach and lorry areas.

Once I could not park in a council car park in the car section, went in the coaches only and got fined. Clearly signed so I paid up.

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[The DATeam]

Service station companies try their hardest to encourage coaches to stop at their services. Why not, I have up to 59 passengers wanting refreshment when I stop at one. That's why the parking hitlers are out in force around coach bays. No money in HGV parking, unless they are overnighting, just one driver who is self sufficient in their cab, as are motorhomers and tuggers.

 

[GJH]

Coach bays annoy me, well not coach bays but the managing of them compared to hgv bays, park in a coach bay and the parking hitlers are all over you, hgv bays apparently are fair game for anyone not in an hgv it seems.

Service station companies try their hardest to encourage coaches to stop at their services. Why not, I have up to 59 passengers wanting refreshment when I stop at one. That's why the parking hitlers are out in force around coach bays. No money in HGV parking, unless they are overnighting, just one driver who is self sufficient in their cab, as are motorhomers and tuggers.

There is obviously money to be made in encouraging coach drivers to stop, but that applies to many tourist attractions not just MSAs. The other factor is that coach bays are placed where they are because many coach passengers are of advancing years (even more advanced than @old-mo) so don't want to walk far to the facilities

 

[mitzimad]

Coach bays annoy me, well not coach bays but the managing of them compared to hgv bays, park in a coach bay and the parking hitlers are all over you, hgv bays apparently are fair game for anyone not in an hgv it seems.

thats because lorries dont bring fifty people to spend their money on overpriced food and tat

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[DanielFord]

thats because lorries dont bring fifty people to spend their money on overpriced food and tat

I used to know a coach driver, he said that the services would provide him with a free meal as an enticement to stop there. Does that still happen?

 

[GJH]

I used to know a coach driver, he said that the services would provide him with a free meal as an enticement to stop there. Does that still happen?

Oh yes, just look on the web sites of the MSA operators - and some leisure outlets.

 

[sedge]

I've known us go into a services, possibly coming home late at night from a ferry fully intending to use their loos and have a coffee that someone else has made for us, not in a plastic/paper cup. When we've assessed where we've been directed to park or the only parts without a height barrier, it's usually looked so dodgy and sometimes with iffy looking types milling about aimlessly, apparently - neither of us has wanted to leave the van so we've used the van loo and just grabbed a bottle of water to drink, before setting off again.

Makes a really crap ending to a nice holiday whereas I used to like to go, liked it when I was there and liked to come home again. (No difference here, whether it's a couple of days in Skeg, Norfolk, wherever, a fortnight in Goa or a couple of months in France etc etc)

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