Guide to Wittering services

Wittering
Location:

A1 northbound between Peterborough and Stamford

Signposted from the road.

Postcode:

PE8 6HA

map and directions

Access/Layout:

Single site located between junctions on one side of the road.


A newly-rebuilt petrol station by the northbound A1.

Facilities

Catering: Starbucks Drive Thru Outdoor Space: Muddy area behind fence only; public footpath connections Forecourt: BP, SPAR, Wild Bean Café, LPG, Free Cash Machine

Parking Prices

Short stay customer parking is available. No HGV parking is available.

Parking within the Starbucks car park is limited to 2 hours maximum stay. These restrictions are strictly enforced by Civil Enforcement Ltd.

This information is provided to us by third parties. You should always check with staff on site.

Contact Details

🏢 Address:
Super Service Station
Great North Road
Thornhaugh
Peterborough
Cambridgeshire
PE8 6HA


Trivia and Design

The Starbucks Drive Thru, built in replacement of the cafe.

A pair of filling station were positioned here long before the A1 was upgraded to dual carriageway.

Super History

The northbound site became known as Super service station and it had a large parking area, gaining a café called 'Woodview Café'. The filling station here has always been branded Shell since opening.

The northbound café closed in the early 2010s. In August 2018 the café was demolished and a Starbucks Drive Thru was built on the land.

Shell sold the site to MFG in 2017, who rebranded the shop to Londis. During early 2018, MFG refurbished the site with a Budgens store replacing Londis, Starbucks on the Go replacing Costa Express and a new Subway store being added. The shop reverted back to Londis during Autumn 2021.

The forecourt was sold to Platinum Retail in April 2023, to placate the Competition and Markets Authority. The forecourt rebranded from Shell to BP, with the shop becoming a SPAR store with Costa Express and Rollover food to go offerings. The Subway store also closed due to franchising reasons. During summer 2023, the new food to go offerings were swapped with a Wild Bean Café Express unit.

23.5 Degrees were acquired by Starbucks UK in October 2024, absorbing the drive thru store here into the company operated estate.

Abbotts Wood History

The abandoned southbound services, pictured in 2015, before the building was demolished.

Another petrol station called Abbotts Wood service station was situated on the southbound side, but this closed in around 2005 and was eventually demolished. Its position can still be made out. Shell had proposed to add a 40-seater restaurant to the site in 1992, but this was refused on the basis that there was no need for another facility.

There have been several plans to bring the southbound site back into use, with the first coming in 2006 for a 20-bed hotel to replace the derelict buildings but these plans were refused again due to being too close to nearby facilities. In 2010 and again in 2017, there were plans to bring the site back into use as a petrol station, with no success.

Planning permission was granted in January 2020 for redeveloping the former Abbotts Wood site and building a 20-bay electric vehicle charging station, with an amenity building providing refreshments and toilet facilities. The landowner says this is still their long-term intention, but in the meantime, the land will be used to host billboards.

A dilapidated concrete shelter, which survived from the building's original use, was demolished in early 2023.

Alternatives

Previous:Next:
Stibbington (2 miles)Services on the A1Bloody Oaks (northbound, 7 miles)
Colsterworth (17 miles)