Whether you're not interested in the subject of motorway services but need a quick bit of information, or if you live and breathe them but need help with the website, we all need to stop for directions from time-to-time. These guides should point you the right way.
If you were just looking for a bit of advice finding a service station then you've taken a bit of a wrong turn. You're in a deeply technical area now. We'd suggest tapping the 'motorways' button above or trying one of the other menu buttons.
Contacting a Service Station Operator
If you are trying to get in touch with a service area, you must use one of their official channels. Many of these are outlined at this link. This website cannot help you with service station issues and the rest of this page deals with technical queries only.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently asked questions about how this website works. It is probably the best place to start if you have a question, or if you're looking for more information on the website.
Terminology
Our not-so-standard dictionary definitions of the not-so-standard phrases we use.
How To Edit Motorway Services Online
Any member can edit most pages on this site. This guide explains how to do it, and how all the code works.
There are some further guides specific to this website:
- Creating infoboxes
- Style guide (especially for brands)
- A list of all templates
- What do we need help with?
Uploading and Displaying Photos
Information on uploading and using pictures on the site.
Editor's Tricks
A list of little-known features within the site which may help the keenest of editors.
Accessibility
We want everyone to be able to use this website, regardless of ability, device, or context. We're committed to providing a website that is accessible to as many people as possible, including people with visual, motor, cognitive, or hearing impairments.
To make the site as accessible as we can, we:
- Use access keys to help with navigation (these are documented).
- Provide alternative text (alt text) for most images and visual elements.
- Use high-contrast colours and aim for good readability across all devices.
- Avoid text embedded in images.
- Avoid using video or audio content.
- Support zoom and custom font sizes where possible. Large zooms on small browser windows will activate our mobile first design, which allows full navigation while keeping the main content visible.
- Use semantic HTML and headings to help assistive technologies.
- Offer a dark mode setting (see editor's tricks).
- Use visual enhancements (such as row highlights on hover) on large data tables to make them easier to follow.
- Use a consistent page layout and navigation structure throughout, with almost all links opening in the same tab, so users know what to expect.
- Regularly review text to avoid overly long or complicated paragraphs. We try to make use of headings to help with scanning.
- Avoid inaccurate or unhelpful link text.
Some archive material and third-party embeds may not fully meet accessibility standards. We are working to improve these over time.
Some features, such as interactive maps or quizzes, may not work as well with screen readers. Where possible, we will provide alternative versions or summaries.
Some of the topics we deal with are technical, so explaining them can be complicated. We try to explain abbreviations where possible, and review page structures regularly to reduce clutter.
We welcome feedback on the accessibility of this website. If you experience any problems or have suggestions for improvement, please contact us.
If you'd like content provided in a different format (e.g. plain text, large print), we're happy to help wherever we can. We have a separate guide for neurodivergent users.
We aim to comply with the Equality Act 2010 and follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, aiming for Level AA as a minimum target.
Cookie Policy/Disclaimer
Details on the site's cookie policy and disclaimer can be found on the about page.
Further Help
For further help, you can contact us or post on one of our social media pages. If you can use the message wall (talk pages), you can also post a message there.