Motorway Services Online

Locations:	60 MSAs
Often accompanied by:	EDC, Burger King
Related names:	Costa Express
Used by:	Moto, Roadchef, Extra
Introduced:	2000
Predecessors:	Cafe Continental, Caffè Ritazza, Little Chef, LP4, Upper Crust
Successors:	Nescafé Nation, Greggs, Lavazza, Subway, Starbucks on the Go
Typical opening hours:	Most motorway sites 24 hours
See also:	M&S Food, Starbucks

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Revision as of 17:07, 27 February 2025

It feels like there's not a building in Europe which doesn't serve Costa, usually in several places at once. This is certainly the case on the motorways.

The brand started in London in 1971, and by the early 2000s Costa Coffee and its slogan at the time "Italian about coffee" was becoming a familiar sight in most town centres and shopping centres. It had been specially developed to take advantage of the growing demand for takeaway coffee.

By 2018, Costa had become the UK's biggest coffee shop chain and some shareholders were calling for it to be separated from the Whitbread Group. They sold it to Coca Cola for £3.9billion (around £5billion in 2025). A highly-publicised partnership with M&S Food in November 2021 saw M&S Food sold at Costa, in doing so introducing the M&S range to Roadchef service areas.

The 2022 Transport Focus study found that Costa was by far the most popular brand on the motorway network.

The prices charged at Costa are set by the franchisee, and on the motorway these tend to be heavily inflated. The fact people continue to pay may explain why so many Costas have opened up near the motorways.

Motorway History

Roadchef were the first operator to introduce Costa to their motorway services. They approached Costa with a proposal in 1999, and opened the first one at Stafford in April 2000. A nationwide investment programme then saw Costa replace Cafe Continental at all Roadchefs.

Granada partnered with Caffè Ritazza and hoped to see the same success. Their successors, Moto ditched Caffè Ritazza in 2009, in favour of Costa. Welcome Break, who had been keen to be different, eventually adopted Starbucks and were keen to stress that this set them apart. Costa Express was then introduced to shops across the country in 2011. Until Starbucks on the Go machines became widely available, Welcome Break offered Costa Express too.

Over the years the availability of Costa at service stations has spread from being tucked away in an old unit or a stand next to the restaurant to being served outside the entrance, in the restaurant, from a portable stand, in the shop and in the petrol station - usually all at the same time.

The lounges have become increasingly stylish as the image of service stations and of Costa has changed. Many services now rely on Costa's menu only to meet their obligation to provide food 24 hours a day.

In July 2016, Roadchef opened their first Costa drive thru, in a similar style to Welcome Break's Starbucks drive thrus. Drive thru Costas can now be found at most Moto and Roadchef services.

Road Signs

Roadchef were the first operator to register a subsidiary company 'Roadchef Costa Coffee', which sneakily allowed them to advertise their relationship with Costa while technically not breaching the ban on advertising. Moto later decided to go one better, changing their headerboard to 'Costa M&S' or other variants.

Other Roadside Sites

Many former Esso On the Run stores used to include a Costa café, where you could pay for your fuel at the same time. These all closed by 2015 and many have been replaced by Subway and Greggs at Euro Garages sites.

Through its relationship with Moto, Costa has become a popular choice to replace former Little Chef restaurants. However, Euro Garages are currently the fastest-growing operator in the industry, and as Euro Garages use Starbucks, Costa has begun to take a back seat in this field.

In Ireland, Applegreen used Costa at most motorway service areas, alongside their own takeaway coffee brand. This partnership ended in 2023, when Lavazza was rolled out instead.

Drive Thru

In July 2016, Roadchef were the first operator to introduce a Costa Drive Thru unit to a motorway service area at their Rownhams eastbound site. One has also opened on the westbound side since and they are now opening at other Roadchef sites. Then, in April 2017, Moto also introduced a Costa Drive Thru to their Reading eastbound site and they are rolling it out to other sites too.

Unlike the Starbucks sites, all of these Costa drive thrus don't offer any seating. A Costa drive thru is being included in many new service station proposals.

Locations

Costa is a prolific brand with sites to be found all over the country. Examples of service areas they can be found at are as follows: [view on a map - Download KML]

Motorway Locations

Costa stores are generally found at motorway service areas operated by Moto, Roadchef or Extra. These are:

Annandale Water (A74(M))
Birch (M62)
Bothwell (M74) (southbound only)
Blackburn with Darwen (M65)
Blyth (A1(M)/A1)
Bridgwater (M5)
Burton-in-Kendal (M6)
Cardiff West (M4)
Cherwell Valley (M40/A43)
Chester (M56)
Chieveley (M4/A34)
Clacket Lane (M25)
Cullompton (M5)
Doncaster (North) (M18/M180)
Donington (M1/A42/A50)
Durham (A1(M))
Exeter (M5)
Ferrybridge (M62/A1(M)/A1)
Folkestone (M20)
Frankley (M5)
Hamilton (M74) (northbound only)
Heston (M4)
Hilton Park (M6)
Killington Lake (M6) (southbound only)
Kinross (M90)
Knutsford (M6)
Leeming Bar (A1(M))
Leigh Delamere (M4)
Lancaster (M6)
Lymm (M6/M56)
Magor (M4)
Medway (M2)
Maidstone (M20)
Northampton (M1/A43)
Norton Canes (M6 Toll)
Pease Pottage (M23/A23)
Peterborough (A1(M)/A1)
Pont Abraham (M4)
Reading (M4)
Rownhams (M27)
Rugby (M6)
Sandbach (M6)
Scotch Corner (A1(M)/A66)
Sedgemoor (M5) (southbound only)
Severn View (M48)
Southwaite (M6)
Stafford (M6)
Stirling (M9/M80)
Strensham (M5)
Swansea West (M4)
Tamworth (M42/A5)
Taunton Deane (M5)
Thurrock (M25/A13/A282)
Tibshelf (M1)
Toddington (M1)
Todhills (M6) (southbound only)
Trowell (M1)
Washington (A1(M))
Watford Gap (M1)
Wetherby (A1(M))
Winchester (M3)
Woolley Edge (M1)

Motorway Drive Thrus

Costa Drive Thru units can now be found at many Moto and Roadchef service areas. These are: [view on a map - Download KML]

Birch (M62) (eastbound only)
Cherwell Valley (M40/A43)
Chester (M56)
Clacket Lane (M25)
Exeter (M5)
Folkestone (M20)
Hamilton (M74) (northbound only)
Knutsford (M6) (northbound only)
Magor (M4)
Maidstone (M20)
Northampton (M1/A43)
Norton Canes (M6 Toll)
Reading (M4) (eastbound only)
Rownhams (M27)
Rugby (M6)
Sedgemoor (M5) (southbound only)
Sandbach (M6)
Stafford (M6) (northbound only)
Strensham (M5)
Taunton Deane (M5)
Toddington (M1)
Tibshelf (M1)
Watford Gap (M1)
Wetherby (A1(M))

A-road Locations

The following A-road services have full, Costa-branded stores:

Cambridge (A14)
Cornwall (A30)
Grantham North (A1)
Lychgate (A299) (westbound only)
Spalding (A16)
Spaldwick (A14)
Sutton Scotney (A34)
Thirsk (A19)
Whitley (A49)

A-road Drive Thrus

Costa drive thrus can be found at the following A-road service areas:

Cornwall (A30)
Crossbush (A27)
Evesham (A44/A46)
Gate (A2) (westbound only)
Minster (A299)
Ollerton (A614)
Solstice (A303)
Wynyard Park (A19/A689)

Former Locations

Costa has been removed from the following official service areas:

Birdhill (M7)
Castlebellingham (M1)
Enfield (M4)
Gateway westbound (A55)
Harthill (M8)
Leicester Markfield (A511)
Lusk (M1)
Paulstown (M9)
Wicklow (M11)

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@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 |name = Costa Coffee
 |colour = #74172F
-|image = Costa Chester 2018.jpg
+|image = Costa Coffee Chester 2024.jpg
 |locations = msas
-|associated = [[EDC]], [[Burger King]]
+|accompaniedby = [[EDC]], [[Burger King]]
+|usedby = [[Moto]], [[Roadchef]], [[Extra]]
+|seealso = [[Marks and Spencer Simply Food|M&S Food]], [[Starbucks]]
+|related = [[Costa Express]]
 |introduced = 2000
-|predecessors = [[Cafe Continental]], [[Caffe Ritazza|Caffè Ritazza]], [[Coffee Nation]], [[Little Chef]], [[LP4]], [[Upper Crust]]
+|predecessors = [[Cafe Continental]], [[Caffe Ritazza|Caffè Ritazza]], [[Little Chef]], [[LP4]], [[Upper Crust]]
-|successors = [[Cafe Nescafe|Nescafé Nation]], [[Greggs]], [[Subway]], [[Starbucks on the Go]]
+|successors = [[Cafe Nescafe|Nescafé Nation]], [[Greggs]], [[Lavazza]], [[Subway]], [[Starbucks on the Go]]
+|openinghours = Most motorway sites 24 hours
 |website = costa.co.uk
 |facebook = CostaCoffee
-|openinghours = Most motorway sites 24 hours
 |twitter = CostaCoffee
+|instagram = costacoffee
+|tiktok = costacoffee
 |country = both
 }}
@@ Line 19: / Line 24: @@
 The brand started in London in 1971, and by the early 2000s Costa Coffee and its slogan at the time "Italian about coffee" was becoming a familiar sight in most town centres and shopping centres. It had been specially developed to take advantage of the growing demand for takeaway coffee.
-By 2018, Costa had become the UK's biggest coffee shop chain and some shareholders were calling for it to be separated from the Whitbread Group. They sold it to Coca Cola for £3.9 billion.
+By 2018, Costa had become the UK's biggest coffee shop chain and some shareholders were calling for it to be separated from the Whitbread Group. They sold it to Coca Cola for £3.9billion (around £{{inflation|4.86754787135|extension=billion}}). A highly-publicised partnership with [[Marks and Spencer Simply Food|M&S Food]] in November 2021 saw M&S Food sold at Costa, in doing so introducing the M&S range to Roadchef service areas.
+The 2022 [[Transport Focus]] study found that Costa was by far the most popular brand on the motorway network.
 The prices charged at Costa are set by the franchisee, and on the motorway these tend to be heavily inflated. The fact people continue to pay may explain why so many Costas have opened up near the motorways.
@@ Line 26: / Line 33: @@
 [[Roadchef]] were the first operator to introduce Costa to their motorway services. They approached Costa with a proposal in 1999, and opened the first one at [[Stafford (South)|Stafford]] in April 2000. A nationwide investment programme then saw Costa replace [[Cafe Continental]] at all Roadchefs.
-Granada partnered with [[Caffe Ritazza|Caffè Ritazza]] and hoped to see the same success, but in 2009 they ditched Caffè Ritazza in favour of Costa. Welcome Break, who had been keen to be different, eventually adopted [[Starbucks]] and were keen to stress that this set them apart. They now offer Costa Express too.
+[[Granada]] partnered with [[Caffe Ritazza|Caffè Ritazza]] and hoped to see the same success. Their successors, [[Moto]] ditched Caffè Ritazza in 2009, in favour of Costa. Welcome Break, who had been keen to be different, eventually adopted [[Starbucks]] and were keen to stress that this set them apart. [[Costa Express]] was then introduced to shops across the country in 2011. Until Starbucks on the Go machines became widely available, Welcome Break offered Costa Express too.
 Over the years the availability of Costa at service stations has spread from being tucked away in an old unit or a stand next to the restaurant to being served outside the entrance, in the restaurant, from a portable stand, in the shop and in the petrol station - usually all at the same time.
@@ Line 41: / Line 48: @@
 Through its relationship with [[Moto]], Costa has become a popular choice to replace former [[Little Chef]] restaurants. However, Euro Garages are currently the fastest-growing operator in the industry, and as Euro Garages use Starbucks, Costa has begun to take a back seat in this field.
+In Ireland, [[Applegreen]] used [[Costa]] at most motorway service areas, alongside their own takeaway coffee brand. This partnership ended in 2023, when [[Lavazza]] was rolled out instead.
 ===Drive Thru===
-[[File:Strensham North Costa Drive Thru 2017.JPG|200px|thumb|right|A Costa Drive Thru at Strensham|alt=Costa Drive Thru]]
+[[File:Costa Drive Thru Strensham North 2023.jpg|200px|thumb|right|A Costa Drive Thru at Strensham.|alt=Costa Drive Thru]]
-In July 2016, Roadchef were the first operator to introduce a Costa Drive Thru unit to a motorway service area at their [[Rownhams|Rownhams eastbound]] site. One has also opened on the westbound side since and now opening at other Roadchef sites. Then, in April 2017, [[Moto]] also introduced a Costa Drive Thru to their [[Reading|Reading eastbound]] site and they are rolling it out to other sites too.
+In July 2016, Roadchef were the first operator to introduce a Costa Drive Thru unit to a motorway service area at their [[Rownhams|Rownhams eastbound]] site. One has also opened on the westbound side since and they are now opening at other Roadchef sites. Then, in April 2017, [[Moto]] also introduced a Costa Drive Thru to their [[Reading|Reading eastbound]] site and they are rolling it out to other sites too.
-Unlike the Starbucks sites, all of these Costa drive thrus don't offer any seating. It is being included in many new service station proposals.
+Unlike the Starbucks sites, all of these Costa drive thrus don't offer any seating. A Costa drive thru is being included in many new service station proposals.
-==Costa Express==
+==Locations==
-[[File:LDE BP CXP 2015.jpg|250px|thumb|right|A pair of Costa Express machines.|alt=Costa Express at Leigh Delamere petrol station.]]
+Costa is a prolific brand with sites to be found all over the country. Examples of service areas they can be found at are as follows: {{viewonamap|search=Costa_Coffee}}
-In March 2011 Whitbread, the then-owner of the Costa Coffee brand, purchased [[Coffee Nation]] with the intention of re-branding it as Costa Express.
-Coffee Nation was a brand widely seen across motorway service areas providing coffee machines within petrol forecourts and [[WHSmith]] outlets. They are also seen at most A-road services.
-Costa Express machines now offer five varieties of hot drinks and are the largest coffee machine provider for forecourts in the UK. Their widespread use allows a large number of petrol stations in the UK to be classed as a full service station by providing the key requirement of serving hot drinks with very low running costs.
-During mid 2018, [[Welcome Break]] started to phase out the use of Costa Express at their sites in favour of [[Starbucks on the Go]] machines.
-==Locations==
 ===Motorway Locations===
-Costa stores can be found at many motorway service stations. They are: {{viewonamap}}
+Costa stores are generally found at motorway service areas operated by Moto, Roadchef or Extra. These are:
 * [[Annandale Water]] (A74(M))
@@ Line 68: / Line 69: @@
 * [[Blyth]] (A1(M)/A1)
 * [[Bridgwater]] (M5)
-* [[Burton in Kendal]] (M6)
+* [[Burton-in-Kendal]] (M6)
 * [[Cardiff West]] (M4)
 * [[Cherwell Valley]] (M40/A43)
@@ Line 76: / Line 77: @@
 * [[Cullompton]] (M5)
 * [[Doncaster (North)]] (M18/M180)
-* [[Donington Park]] (M1/A42/A50)
+* [[Donington]] (M1/A42/A50)
 * [[Durham]] (A1(M))
 * [[Exeter]] (M5)
-* [[Ferrybridge]] (M62/A1)
+* [[Ferrybridge]] (M62/A1(M)/A1)
+* [[Folkestone]] (M20)
 * [[Frankley]] (M5)
 * [[Hamilton]] (M74) ''(northbound only)''
@@ Line 96: / Line 98: @@
 * [[Northampton]] (M1/A43)
 * [[Norton Canes]] (M6 Toll)
-* [[Pease Pottage]] (M23)
+* [[Pease Pottage]] (M23/A23)
-* [[Peterborough]] (A1(M)
+* [[Peterborough]] (A1(M)/A1)
 * [[Pont Abraham]] (M4)
 * [[Reading]] (M4)
@@ Line 110: / Line 112: @@
 * [[Stirling]] (M9/M80)
 * [[Strensham]] (M5)
-* [[Swansea]] (M4)
+* [[Swansea West]] (M4)
 * [[Tamworth]] (M42/A5)
 * [[Taunton Deane]] (M5)
 * [[Thurrock]] (M25/A13/A282)
 * [[Tibshelf]] (M1)
-* [[Tiverton]] (M5)
 * [[Toddington]] (M1)
-* [[Todhills]] (M6)
+* [[Todhills]] (M6) ''(southbound only)''
 * [[Trowell]] (M1)
 * [[Washington]] (A1(M))
@@ Line 124: / Line 125: @@
 * [[Winchester]] (M3)
 * [[Woolley Edge]] (M1)
-===Motorway Forecourts===
-Moto have a few Costa units in some of their forecourts. They are:
-* [[Bridgwater]] (M5)
-* [[Chieveley]] (M4)
-* [[Exeter]] (M5)
-* [[Pease Pottage]] (M23)
 ===Motorway Drive Thrus===
-Costa Drive Thru units can now be found at many services. They are: {{viewonamap}}
+Costa Drive Thru units can now be found at many Moto and Roadchef service areas. These are: {{viewonamap|name=Costa Drive Thru}}
 * [[Birch]] (M62) ''(eastbound only)''
@@ Line 141: / Line 134: @@
 * [[Clacket Lane]] (M25)
 * [[Exeter]] (M5)
+* [[Folkestone]] (M20)
 * [[Hamilton]] (M74) ''(northbound only)''
 * [[Knutsford]] (M6) ''(northbound only)''
 * [[Magor]] (M4)
 * [[Maidstone]] (M20)
-* [[Northampton]] (M1)
+* [[Northampton]] (M1/A43)
 * [[Norton Canes]] (M6 Toll)
 * [[Reading]] (M4) ''(eastbound only)''
@@ Line 159: / Line 153: @@
 * [[Watford Gap]] (M1)
 * [[Wetherby]] (A1(M))
-===Ireland===
-Costa stores can also be found at the following services in Ireland:
-* [[Birdhill]] (M7)
-* [[Castlebellingham]] (M1)
-* [[Enfield]] (M4)
-* [[Lusk]] (M1)
-* [[Paulstown]] (M9)
-* [[Wicklow]] (M11)
-===Costa Express Only===
-The following motorway services provide [[#Costa Express|Costa Express]] machines only: {{viewonamap|name=Costa_Express}}
-* [[Baldock|Baldock (forecourt only)]] (A1(M))
-* [[Barton Park|Barton Park (forecourt only)]] (A1(M))
-* [[Beaconsfield|Beaconsfield (forecourt only)]] (M40)
-* [[Bowtrees|Bowtrees (forecourt only)]] (M876)
-* [[Cobham]] (M25)
-* [[Folkestone|Folkestone (forecourt only)]] (M20)
-* [[Glews|Glews (forecourt only)]] (M62)
-* [[Gretna|Gretna (forecourt only)]] (A74(M))
-* [[London Gateway|London Gateway (main building only)]] (M1)
-* [[Newport Pagnell]] (M1)
-* [[Old Inns|Old Inns (forecourt only)]]
-* [[South Mimms|South Mimms Truckstop]] (M25/A1(M)/A1)
 ===A-road Locations===
-Many A-road services provide Costa Express machines. The following A-road services have full, Costa-branded stores. These are:
+The following A-road services have full, Costa-branded stores:
 * [[Cambridge]] (A14)
-* [[Willowtree|Cawledge (forecourt)]] (A1)
 * [[Cornwall]] (A30)
-* [[Gateway (A55)|Gateway]] (A55) ''(westbound only)''
 * [[Grantham North]] (A1)
 * [[Thanet Way|Lychgate]] (A299) ''(westbound only)''
@@ Line 198: / Line 164: @@
 * [[Spaldwick]] (A14)
 * [[Sutton Scotney]] (A34)
+* [[Thirsk]] (A19)
 * [[Whitley]] (A49)
-===A-road Drive Thrus===
+====A-road Drive Thrus====
+Costa drive thrus can be found at the following A-road service areas:
 * [[Cornwall]] (A30)
+* [[Crossbush]] (A27)
 * [[Evesham]] (A44/A46)
-* [[Lomondgate]] (A82)
+* [[Gate]] (A2) ''(westbound only)''
 * [[Minster]] (A299)
 * [[Ollerton]] (A614)
@@ Line 209: / Line 179: @@
 * [[Wynyard Park]] (A19/A689)
-==Former Locations==
+===Former Locations===
-Costa has been removed from the following locations.
+Costa has been removed from the following official service areas:
-*[[Markfield]] (M1/A50)
+* [[Birdhill]] (M7)
+* [[Castlebellingham]] (M1)
+* [[Enfield]] (M4)
+* [[Gateway (A55)|Gateway westbound]] (A55)
+* [[Heart of Scotland|Harthill]] (M8)
+* [[Markfield|Leicester Markfield]] (A511)
+* [[Lusk]] (M1)
+* [[Paulstown]] (M9)
+* [[Wicklow]] (M11)
 {{bottomnav|comments=Moto}}
-[[Category:Brands]][[Category:Roadchef]][[Category:Moto]][[Category:Irish Brands]][[Category:Roadchef comments]]
+[[Category:Brands]][[Category:Roadchef]][[Category:Moto]][[Category:Irish Brands]][[Category:Roadchef comments]][[Category:Applegreen]][[Category:Extra]]