First Motorway Service Station Pub opens on M40

The first pub at a motorway service station – JD Wetherspoons  The Hope and Champion – has opened at Beaconsfield Services on the M40.

Where to stop for a bite to eat on UK motorways can often be a bit of a lottery, with many oif us seeking a pub just off the motorway for a bit of a break and a spot of lunch.

But now, amid some controversy and complaints from safety groups, JD Wetherspoons has opened the first pub at a motorway services, with the Hope and Champion open for business at Beaconsfield Services on the M40.

The Hope and Champion will be open from 4am to 1am, seven days a week, and serve the usual JD Wetherspoons fodder of passable meals and drinks and, say JD Wetherspoons, a wide range of non-alcoholic drinks, tea and coffee.

As you would expect in our ‘Elf and Safety obsessed society, do-gooders are up in arms about a pub being so easily accessible to drivers, with the Royal College of Physicians saying it sends out all the wrong messages to drivers and the road safety charity BRAKE saying it’s a serious concern.

But really, a boozy lunch is within easy reach for any driver on any motorway in the UK, and having a pub with food at a service station is no big deal, just a convenience for hard-pressed motorists looking for a bite to eat in a reasonable environment.

Let’s get some perspective.