Are These The UK’s Best LGV Truck Stops?

LGV Truck stops are a very important factor in enjoying your job as an LGV driver. The right facilities can make long journeys a real treat, and something you enjoy doing rather than something you’re simply paid to do. Hot showers, good food, evening entertainment, clean facilities, security and reasonable prices are all important when it comes to your overnight accommodation. Not only do you need to be comfortable, but your truck needs to be well looked after too.

We asked working LGV drivers in the UK to recommend their favourite LGV truck stops to us, and these are the ones that were mentioned again and again.

The Stockyard, Rotherham

The Stockyard is a firm favourite with UK truckers, because visiting it is much more like taking a country vacation than stopping for a break in services during a long working drive. There are live performances, and karaoke to entertain you in the evenings, and the food is all home-cooked and high quality. You can even get a hot shower on site.

The Stockyard could probably charge a lot more than it does for refreshments, but truckers who want to relax with a drink during an overnight stay will find that the prices are more than fair – despite the terrible reputation some LGV truck stops have for overcharging.

The Red Lion, Northampton

The Red Lion mixes food, drink and all the modern conveniences you could want for an overnight stay. Parking is cheap, and there’s a 24-hour security team with infrared CCTV to look after your cargo and your steed while you enjoy the cafe and bar. The menu offers mixed grills and traditional pub food or healthy options, giving you the choice to either treat yourself or keep fit and trim.

Entertainment includes football on TV with drinks offers, as well as horse racing, darts and pool.

Leeming Bar

Leeming Bar is frequently cited as one of the most popular truck stops in the UK. A more homely version of a service station, it’s perfect for truck drivers in the middle of a long journey.

It has all the refreshments you could want from famous name fast food brands, as well as reasonable prices and great facilities for an overnight stay.

The Hollies Cannock

The Hollies is a famous LGV truck stop which has served celebrities like Tom Jones and Bernard Manning – as well as many truckers over the decades. Despite its long history, it still maintains the highest standards of service today. Everyone should try to stop over at The Hollies at least once during their driving career.

Formula Ellesmere Port

The Formula at Ellesmere Port is slick and stylish, and very modern, with a red and black theme that runs throughout all the rooms. Professional LGV drivers are huge fans of Formula, citing it as an example of what a modern-day truck stop can and should be.

It has relaxation lounges, showers and laundry facilities, and feels more like staying in a very high tech hotel than a truck stop.

The Perils of not Stopping at an LGV truck stops

As great as all these LGV truck stops are, there is another reason to give them your custom if you’re a working trucker.  The alternative might just get you fined, as one unfortunate driver found out when he stopped to prepare a healthy lunch on the hard shoulder of the M25.