M4 motorway services named among best in UK but not everyone will agree

There's plenty for drivers to do there, with 13 different dining and drink options and five shops

Lorna Hughes 05:00, 24 Jul 2025

A motorway service station near Bristol has been named the UK's second-best in a new analysis. And there's plenty for drivers to do during a stop there, with 13 different dining and drink options and five shops.

Leigh Delamere Moto is on the M4 between Bristol and Swindon - around a 30-minute drive from the city centre.

It scored highly in a new ranking produced by Webuyanycar, which scored service stations out of 100 based on factors including their food options, facilities and charging points.

It reckons that drivers spend an average of 16.5 minutes in a service station and M&S is the nation's preferred service station chain, followed by Greggs.

Its Dream Service Stations report also says that more drivers stop for a drink than to fuel up on food.

Leigh Delamere Moto scored 79.4 out of 100, earning it second place after Strensham Roadchef in Worcestershire (80.8/100). However, not everyone will agree with the results.

A separate motorway service station ranking released by Which? in May[1] named fancy Gloucester Services at the top, while Bridgwater Services in Somerset was right at the bottom of the list. Leigh Delamere only came in at number 23 on that list, based on a survey of 8,677 experiences from 4,078 Which?

Connect members in November and December 2024.

Leigh Delamere currently only has a 3 out of 5 star rating on motorway services database Motorway Services Online[2], which says motorists can find a Burger King there along with Costa Coffee, Greggs, KFC, Pret A Manger, Krispy Kreme and West Cornwall Pasty Co, M&S Simply Food and WH Smith.

It says drivers can expect: "Two buildings located on the M4 near Chippenham. The eastbound side exterior is slightly larger and it has a small field by the hotel and a lot more trees."

Richard Evans, head of technical services at webuyanycar[3], said: "While some variation in the quality of service stations is to be expected, the findings do show an inconsistency in UK service stations. For people who travel long distances, it's important to have service stations with good facilities available to them.

"Taking regular breaks on long journeys is crucial for safety and well-being purposes, helping to prevent fatigue and keep drivers focused.

Central to this safety approach is having the appropriate rest points where drivers actually want to stop and take a break."

How the service stations were ranked

To find the UK's best and worst service stations, webuyanycar created an index using a combination of data from motorwayservices.uk[4] and from Google reviews.

The index included the number of catering options, amenities and charging points, according to motorwayservices.uk[5], and the Google review score for each service station.

Each location was ranked based on the prevalence of each metric and each given a score out of 100.

The data on facilities was sourced from Motorway Services Online[6].

References

1. ^ service station ranking released by Which? in May (UK%20motorway%20services%20ranked%20with%20M5%20taking%20best%20and%20worst%20spots)
2. ^ Motorway Services Online (motorwayservices.uk)
3. ^ webuyanycar (go.skimresources.com)
4. ^ motorwayservices.uk (motorwayservices.uk)
5. ^ motorwayservices.uk (motorwayservices.uk)
6. ^ Motorway Services Online (motorwayservices.uk)