Thurrock services

Thurrock services is a motorway service station in Thurrock, Essex, next to the M25 motorway. It was planned in the mid-1980s and opened after the M25 was completed. Originally popular, the services have gradually deteriorated and have attracted criticism for poor facilities. The services have also been a magnet for drug trafficking and other criminal activities.

Thurrock services
Thurrock services (Essex)
Information
CountyEssex
RoadM25
Coordinates:51°29′32″N 0°16′20″E
OperatorMoto Hospitality
Date opened1990[1]
WebsiteMoto

Location

The service area, owned by Moto, is accessible from junction 30 and 31 of the M25 motorway. Amenities include a Travelodge hotel. The main entrance leads onto a first floor concourse containing shops and food services. The toilets are located on the ground floor.[2]

Pars of the service station overlooks a lake, which was constructed from a former gravel pit.[2]

History

The site was offered for sale by the landowner to Granada (now Moto Hospitality) in 1976.[3] The area was used for heavy industry and included several pylons, gasometers and industrial sheds.[4] The land had been used for landfill waste, leading to concerns about a build up of methane underneath any development.[5] The sale did not go ahead, but in 1986 the Department of Transport announced that bids would be considered for a 40-acre (16 ha) site next to M25 junction 31.[3] Granada announced the following year they intended to build the services, but Esso won the construction contract.[6] Work began in 1988, but was delayed by an objection to the building design from the local planning authority. The services opened in 1990.[1]

Criticism

The services were popular when opened, and did not attract attention,[4][7] but gradually deteriorated and were criticised. In 2018, a Transport Focus survey of 9,600 motorway service users ranked Thurrock as the worst service area in England, with only 68% reporting a satisfactory experience.[2][8] Problems included a lack of working toilet facilities, queues for showers, no air conditioning and food not kept properly refrigerated.[2][9] Thurrock was found to be the most improved motorway service area in the 2019 edition of the survey.[10]

Crime

The services have been used as an exchange point for illegal drug dealing. A representative from HM Customs and Excise said its location next to a major motorway providing access to cross-channel ports and the rest of the UK made it an ideal meeting point for traffickers.[11]

In 1998, 40 kilograms (88 lb) of heroin was recovered from a van trying to breach a police cordon at the premises.[12] In 2001, heroin valued at £8m was seized following an armed investigation.[11] Two years later, a five-man trafficking team was captured on closed-circuit television; they were subsequently arrested and imprisoned for attempting to distribute £2.6m worth of cocaine.[13] In 2010, a sting operation resulted in several arrests for theft, possession of drugs, carrying offensive weapons and driving without tax and insurance and 32 vehicles were impounded.[14]

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References
  1. Bottomley, Peter (9 June 1989). "Motorway Service Areas (M25)". Hansard. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  2. Marsh, Sarah (27 July 2018). "'It's a dump': why Thurrock was voted England's worst services". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  3. "History of Thurrock services". Motorway Services Online. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  4. Yarrow, Stella (23 July 1995). "Palatable Pit Stop". The Independent. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  5. "Thurrock Service Area". Hansard. 1 November 1993. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  6. "M25 (Service Areas)". Hansard. 12 January 1987. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  7. "Where it's wiser to drive on". The Times. 1 August 1991. p. 5. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  8. "England's best and worst motorway services revealed". Auto Express. 24 July 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  9. "We spent a day at Thurrock services dubbed the worst in the UK and here's what happened". Essex Live. 26 July 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  10. Smithers, Rebecca (1 August 2019). "Severn Bridge services named as worst on England's motorways". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
  11. "Heroin seized at motorway services". BBC News. 30 August 2001. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  12. "£7.5m heroin found in van". The Independent. 23 February 1998. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  13. "Spanish and Colombian drugs gang jailed". HMRC. 30 June 2005. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  14. "Police sting at M25 Thurrock services nets 11 arrests". BBC News. 17 June 2010. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
Next anticlockwise:
South Mimms services		 Motorway service stations on the
M25 motorway		 Next clockwise:
Clacket Lane services
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