Heston service station on the M4 is voted Britain’s worst

As the nation’s drivers will wearily attest, the dubious prize of being named the worst motorway service station is hotly contested. 

Yet a ‘winner’ has emerged amid a raft of scathing reviews that slated everything from the state of its toilets to the price of tea.

A survey of customer satisfaction gave the M4’s eastbound Heston Services, the final potential stop for motorists before London, a score of just 62 per cent.

And the 49-year-old services, 20 minutes from Heathrow, was still leaving visitors underwhelmed yesterday with one dismissing it as ‘old and outdated’.

Online reviews were worse. One said it was ‘dirty, old and tired’, while another said it was the ‘worst I’ve ever been to’ with ‘pretty rank’ toilets.

Another wrote: ‘Keep going, you are nearly in London.’

Heston came last in a survey by the Transport Focus watchdog of 8,700 customers of the 112 service areas in England.

Yesterday, its garage was charging 134.9p for a litre of unleaded and 136.9p for diesel – against the national averages of 118.2p and 120.5p.

Customers have to cough up £2.55 for a pot of tea and £3.32 for a flat white coffee. Each ATM withdrawal costs £1.99. Customers said old napkins, coffee cups, a pile of chips and the remains of pizzas were among the piles of rubbish strewn around the station.

Online reviews were worse. One said it was ‘dirty, old and tired’, while another said it was the ‘worst I’ve ever been to’ with ‘pretty rank’ toilets

Others urged travellers thinking about using Heston services to ‘keep going, you are nearly in London’

Toilets were stained and a lock on the door to one cubicle in the ladies’ was broken (right) while rubbish and the remains of food were littered across tables (left) at Heston Services

Dining tables were sticky and covered in crumbs and sofas were left misshapen and dirty. Toilets were stained and a lock on the door to one cubicle in the ladies’ was broken.

Taxi driver Richard Thompson, of Kent, said: ‘It’s old-looking and it’s never changed.’

Dona Alba, 70, of Putney, south-west London, said: ‘Everything is very expensive. I had to pay £6.87 for two coffees.’

Tim Moss, of Moto, the firm which runs Heston, said: ‘We’re disappointed the [survey] was done in the middle of building work, although we haven’t done as well as we should have.’

He added: ‘I think it’s only fair to point out Heston East is one of the smallest service areas on the network and so is unable to provide many of the facilities we have at our larger sites.’

But it was not all bad news for Moto, which had its westbound Reading service station named the best in the country with a 100 per cent score.

The M61’s northbound Rivington and the M6’s Corley stops were also among the best. Stafford’s southbound M6 stop and the M27’s Rownhams service stations joined Heston as the country’s least popular stop-offs.

Taxi driver Richard Thompson, of Kent, said Heston services were ‘old-looking’ and that they have ‘never changed’

Customers looking to withdraw cash at Heston services have to pay £1.99

Tim Moss, of Moto, the firm which runs Heston, said: ‘We’re disappointed the [survey] was done in the middle of building work, although we haven’t done as well as we should have’