It will come as no surprise to anyone in the habit of travelling long distances by car that drivers are fed up with the prices charged at motorway service stations.
A sandwich and a drink can leave little change from a £10 note.
Today, car safety charity the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) confirms just how much drivers are paying, with research showing that basic food and drink costs up to four times more in service stations. On average, items bought on the high street cost 25% less than at service stations.
The IAM survey also showed that petrol costs up to 10p a litre more on motorway forecourts compared to urban ones.
This practice is galling to drivers and their passengers who feel they are being deliberately fleeced. Of course it is not obligatory to stop at motorway service stations, but many motorists are loath to divert on spec into nearby towns, simply in search of a cup of restorative coffee, because of the risk of losing time and getting caught in local traffic.
Should it really be too much to ask retailers in service stations to charge more equitable prices? More competition would certainly help: in France, the prices charged by different fuel retailers en route is advertised on motorway-side price comparison boards. The same should be done here: every little helps.
While the high prices are infuriating, however, this is not just a question of money. More important is the question of whether these prices could be putting drivers off breaking their journeys. Driver fatigue is thought to be a contributory factor in a quarter of fatal and serious accidents. For that reason, drivers are advised to take a break every two hours. Motorway service stations are supposed to be convenient places for drivers to stop, stretch their legs, nap if necessary and refuel both themselves and their vehicles.
Yet the IAM fears £3 cups of coffee and £2 bottles of water could be putting some drivers off. Some 17,000 people a year break down on motorways because they run out of fuel. How many do so because they have been trying to avoid filling up at high-cost motorway filling stations? Probably a significant proportion.
An official review of prices would help put the overchargers in the spotlight and force change. It is surely time to put the "service" back into service station.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article