Motor Way Service Stations

gozunda

I use the M1 motorway on a regular basis. Travelling at various times morning / afternoon / evening and have found the motorway service stations off the M1 motorway to be absolutely awful in terms of services and facilities. 9 times out of 10 the main food counters (non fast food) are shut or to be told they are closing and don't have anything on offer.

I was informed that the self service meal area doesn't do meals after 5/6 pm and they close everything up. Even the coffee bar closes at this time leaving the only option being the proverbial coffe from the automated dispenser and prepackaged sandwich that is at best just about edible.

The signage is awful with only some of the pumps taking cards and the pumps bizarrely being owned by different companies!

Quite frequently the toilets are dirty and the general upkeep quite poor. Considering the amount that has been spent on developing these service stations so as to provide motorway facilities for motorists these service stations are a bit of a joke imo.

In contrast the Service station at junction 17 on the M 7 which I believe was privately built is absolutely fantastic. It serves proper hot food ( in addition to the fast food offerings) and coffee bar up to 9.00 pm at least. This service station wouldn't have half the square footage of the M1 service stations but understandably is absolutely bunged every day as motorists know you are guaranteed some decent food / coffee / services whilst there no matter what time you are going thru....

Anyone else have similar experiences on the M1?

MugMugs

O use them but never go for food. Can't say I've ever seen the pay by card option offered and for what Xu use it for (diesel and toilet) it serves me well.

I'll give you one thing though. Whenever I.am there about 5/6 they are generally locking everything down food wise which I.always found a bit odd.

Bandara

Applegreen are pretty shocking in the customer experience imo.

I was at the Forecourt of the year awards 2 weeks ago and practically every single fuel company had at least one station nominated for some level of award, except Applegreen, which considering the number of stations they have and the fact that most of them are relatively new is very very poor.

For the record Junction 14 Mayfield on the M7 swept the boards, a fabulous site, well deserved.

gozunda

MugMugs wrote: »

O use them but never go for food. Can't say I've ever seen the pay by card option offered and for what Xu use it for (diesel and toilet) it serves me well.

I'll give you one thing though. Whenever I.am there about 5/6 they are generally locking everything down food wise which I.always found a bit odd.

The estimate the cost for the building of these service stations was 70 million Euros - thats a lot for some fuel and a toilet tbh....looked it up and the blurb states that the service stations are 70 times bigger than your average filling station - thats a hell of a lot of space for basic facilities from 6 pm until the following morning - its just a pity they That they havent lived up to their stated promise of providing services on a par with motorway service stations in continental Europe....or even something like provided on the M7

The consortium that owns them is actually a bunch called Suppershop made up of Applegreen, Pierse Contractingd And Top Who won the PPP contract from the NRA. I think it's time the NRA took a look at these places...

Gary ITR

I only decided this morning to stop using these places. I was left queueing for 6 minutes for a bottle of cranberry juice, they let the queue get massive before opening a second till. I had ordered my coffee from Costa before getting the juice and while upselling is an integral part of retail you ask once not 3 times. I had the following conversation an hour ago

Large latte please
Would you like a granola bar with that?
No thank you
How about a pastry
No thank you
Do you have an applegrren loyalty card
No
Would you like one?
Just make my jaysis coffee will ya

dgt

I find the M1 Castlebelingham stations handy for the atm, a can of monster and a quick piss.

But thats all

pred racer

Mayfield is great during the day,
Stopped there at 05:00 about a month ago, to be told we dont have coffee at night.......A, it was the bloody morning, and B, wtf is the point of having moterway services if you cant get a cup of coffee at night?

munchkin_utd

pred racer wrote: »

Mayfield is great during the day,
Stopped there at 05:00 about a month ago, to be told we dont have coffee at night.......A, it was the bloody morning, and B, wtf is the point of having moterway services if you cant get a cup of coffee at night?

was the self service machine as you go in the door switched off then?

Red Silurian

I drove from Limerick to Belfast a few times over the last few weeks, found the service station at J14 Mayfield infinitely better!

-Toilets were cleaner,
-Decent food was cheaper and always available to purchase except when I drove in on my way back at 1am, but that's to be expected at that hour
-Can't comment on taste differences (as the lusk/castlebellingham stations stopped serving food when I arrived in the door at 5/6) but it was a good roast turkey dinner for €9.50 at mayfield
-Fast food was also cheaper
-The coffee from the machine in the shop at J14 tastes much better than the crap they distribute on the M1 stations (and it was working at 1am)
-Pay-at-pump worked on M7 but not on M1!

One thing the M1 services have going for them
-They are slightly more easily accessible from both sides of the motorway (no need to cross the motorway at the Junction)

Pottler

I use all 3 regularily, much prefer Mayfield, but all I want is fuel, coffee and a bun, which they usually all manage to provide but the attitude at the M1 stations is a bit crap - not really interested staff that barely conceal it. Mayfield staff are nicer and more polite, imo.

Stheno

I regularly (at least every two months) commute Dublin to Belfast, leaving Dublin at 6am and returning hitting the services about 6pm for three to four days at a time.

Burger King, and Costa are still open at that point at both Castlebellingham and Balbriggan services.

Applegreen shut about six/seven for food, I regularly get a bacon sammich about that time.

In the mornings they are always open at 6:30 when I hit them.

Toilets are always fine, service is grand.

Can't believe the difference in other experiences.

Which side of the motorway are ye talking about? I use both north and south bound, north in the morning and south in the evening.

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

I rarely use these stations as i dont use applegreen fuel (discussion been done already bout this)

but i just use the stations to have a quick piss, maybe a drink or a small snack.

toilets are ok when i get there.

drinks have a good selection

but the selection of food is crap anytime im there, its either burger king or chocolate or **** sandwhich.

they could've done a lot better with these.

have the time on the way home from work i cant get coffee or anything because the shop is closed. really should be fully open 24/7 instead of queing at the poxy hatch for 15mins in the cold.

Voodoomelon

Service on the M1 is grand, newsagents is grand, as are the toilets.

The biggest problem is the opening hours, the place shuts down past 6pm.

challengemaster

Voodoomelon wrote: »

The biggest problem is the opening hours, the place shuts down past 6pm.

Very early for something like that

On a side note...This is one thing I've never figured out with Ireland.... the "general population" finishes work at/by 6.... yet almost every service and shop also closes at/by 6... what genius decided on that one