Motorway Services Online

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Fareham

Fareham

Road: M27 at J11
(also accessible to traffic on the A27)
Location: Wallington, Fareham, Hampshire
Authority: Fareham Borough Council
Developer: Welcome Break
Year initiated: 2025
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This is the proposed site at Wallington. For the previous plans, see Meon.

Welcome Break announced in 2025 that they were planning to develop Fareham services at M27 J11.

The site would be positioned at a new roundabout to the north of the motorway, next to the failed park and ride site. Drivers would be brought to a petrol station and a drive thru Starbucks, while a long driveway would lead to parking areas with around 500 car parking spaces, 16 caravan spaces, 7 coach spaces and 50 HGV spaces. 30 electric vehicle charging points will be provided, with the provision for at least 50 in the future, though this is likely to change as the pace of technology moves much faster than the planning system.

The main building is likely to be similar to that of Rotherham, with glass frontage and an overhanging roof, surrounded by parking areas. Screening areas will be created to the east and north, while its position at the top of the hill means it's likely to be visible from the south.

Welcome Break say it represents a £50million investment and will create around 250 jobs. The project is in its early stages and is likely to change significantly. A consultation website has been created. It is likely to be fought by residents, who have campaigned against nearby developments.

The Veolia road will need to be moved to make space for the development. Welcome Break have suggested they will pay for the congested roundabout at M27 J11, which is the centre of several car-dependent developments, to receive additional traffic lights at the notorious exit from Boarhunt, which the service station traffic would be using.

Despite the site being on the edge of a residential area and close to two public footpaths, there is no mention of any provision being made for pedestrians or cyclists, and drawings suggest all staff will need to drive to the facility.

Planning Context

See also: Meon services

The M27 was designed on the basis that it would need three motorway service areas, of which the centre one was never finished. There was an attempt to open the Whiteley site in 2001, but it was fought by residents. The access to that site, directly from the motorway near J9, was reserved from 1973 until 2018, when all four points were cannibalised under bizarre circumstances.

Despite that, the government has frequently acknowledged that the south coast has a shortage of facilities for HGV drivers, especially at Portsmouth, where the port has no stacking space. An updated government policy, published in 2022, says that motorways must offer HGV parking every 14 miles, whereas on the M27 that gap is 22 miles (Welcome Break's statement says it is 90 miles, which they have based on the distance to Pevensey: a misleading figure at best).

The genuine HGV issue and known charging point shortage aside, this roundabout is used overwhelmingly by commuter traffic, who Welcome Break are known to target with their drive thru coffee shops and convenience stores. They have been on a drive to expand since they were taken over by Applegreen.

The farmland around the M27 has been subject to numerous proposals over the last 30 years, with a new town, new housing estates and new industrial units all likely to go ahead, making the remaining land a soft touch for developers. Under government policy, to build a service station at a junction, developers need to show that it couldn't have been built directly on the motorway: Welcome Break will be able to satisfy this by saying the Whiteley plan was a non-starter, whereas this is more likely to happen.

None of the M27's junctions are especially suitable for a major service station. Ironically, M27 J10 is currently being rebuilt from scratch: a new service station with a decent entry and exit could have been factored into that project, but as nothing about British planning or infrastructure is joined up, it was never considered. Likewise, Hampshire County Council's long-held ambition to turn M27 J11 into a car sharing site could easily be realised as part of this project, but it won't be. Neither of these points are the fault of the developer, but are a frustration for neighbours and road users.

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