65 years ago today, the first motorway service area opened, and that set me thinking about how we eat and drink as we travel.  Motorway service areas have got themselves a name for being mediocre and relatively expensive over the years, as have catering outlets at railway stations. That may, or may not, be a fair analysis because of requirements to provide services over long hours, and with payments made for site rental in these prime sites with a strong flow of potential customers likely to purchase.

At the start of last month, I took a "Freedom of Severn and Solent, 8 days in 15" rail ticket at a cost of £68.25 - to cover trips to Bristol for 2 days (for the opening of Ashley Down), to Trowbridge (for a WWRUG^» (West Wiltshire Rail Users Group - about) committee meeting), to Swindon (for GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) 'meet the manager') and to Taunton (for TravelWatch SouthWest).  Remaining days took me to Highbridge (for Burnham), to Lymington Pier (for a day on the Isle of Wight) and to Tiverton (for Dawlish and Teignmouth). But that £68.25 spend pales into insignificance beside the money I spent on food and drink (and none of it, as I recall, alcoholic) during or closely linked to my travels.

Station outlets ... Chippenham, Westbury and Bristol Temple Meads. Near-station catering at Bath Spa and Southampton Central and Severn Beach, Swindon, Dawlish and Nailsea. I don't recall making any onboard purchases from catering trollies; for me, I never know if and when they will appear and most of my journeys are quite short.  "Would you like anything from the trolley". "Yes, I would have loved a coffee 20 minutes ago soon after I boarded, but I'm just about to get off now - you are too late".

The catering at Warminster station was due to close the other day - so I guess it has gone.  Such units are highly reliant on railway trade, and rail strikes and engineering closures put a significant dent in their business.  Reported to me - but hearsay because raising the issue with GWR quickly goes to "we can't talk about that here - commercial in confidence".  Fair enough, I suppose, if these smaller outlets don't ask / involve / invite / co-ordinate with groups, but it certainly has be wondering about the business relationship of outlets such as these with the railways.

I spent £70 on my 8 in 15.  I probably spent over that on catering while I was away from home. I also spent over that on a night of accommodation in Bristol as I had to catch the 07:25 train out of Temple Meads on a Saturday. We may complain at the fares we pay, but they are sometimes just a small part of our overall expenditure when we travel.  Is the financial balance right? What sort of profit to these places make, and where does that profit go?  How much money do they contribute to the railways and is that used to help keep fares down?  Are they looked after by the railways in partnership?