A Journey Through All the Countries Tested: There are No Europe-Wide Standards
Switzerland: Four sites were tested in Switzerland this year: Bellinzona North, Pratteln North, Kemptthal South and Rose de la Broye. Only Bellinzona North was rated "good", the rest were considered "acceptable". This puts Switzerland in the middle third of the test league.
There is particular room for improvement in the fields of outdoor pedestrian safety and outdoor facilities. There are no picnic tables in Bellinzona North or Rose de la Broye; children have nowhere to play in Pratteln North.
Only Bellinzona North and Pratteln North offer a self-service restaurant. Here the range of meals offered confirmed the good reputation of Swiss catering – and the MSAs were rewarded with top ratings. The ADAC's testers judged the service to be "very good" in all the sites. Another things they had in common was that they all have one or several shops. A glance at the prices, however, confirms once again the low purchasing power of the euro in this high-wage country.
In general, the toilets are functionally furnished and look clean. Their results in the laboratory tests, however, were only about average. Fathers with babies have a tough time in Kemptthal South and Pratteln North, because if they are looking for a babies' changing table they end up in the ladies' toilets.
By the way, Switzerland has numerous well-equipped picnic areas in beautiful countryside along the motorways. Almost all of them offer toilets and telephones, some also fresh water and fitness equipment. These picnic areas are a good alternative for drivers who prefer a picnic in the country to going to a restaurant.
France: Eight service areas were tested here: Beaune-Tailly, Venoy Soleil Levant, Montpellier-Fabrègues, Village Catalan, Sorgues, Sommesous, Solaize – and Longeville South, the only one that was rated "poor". All the others were judged "acceptable". Although the country provided the test winner in 2001 and 2002, only two sites achieved a "good" result in 2003. The overall level fell back to average this year.
The differences in ratings were huge in the fields of road safety and parking. Every rating from "very good" to "very poor" was represented here. Beaune Tailly offers travellers more open-air leisure facilities – hiking path, children's climbing tower and keep-fit trail – than any other motorway service area in Europe. At Sommesous, Montpellier Fabrègues and Longeville South you at least find massage chairs in the indoor area.
Performances varied considerably in the field of catering. The service was friendly with the exception of Solaize. Village Catalan, Sommesous and Longeville South failed the hygiene test completely, and the laboratory results were "poor" at all French service areas.
UK: The British MSAs tested were Oxford, Cardiff West, Woolley Edge East, Frankley West, Tebay, Clacket Lane North, Abington and Sandbach South. The results were depressing: two were judged "acceptable" (Oxford and Cardiff West), five "poor" and Sandbach (the overall test loser) "very poor". This put the UK firmly at the bottom of the table in the 2004 Europe-wide test.
The scores for road safety and parking were at least average, but the British service areas fell way behind the European competition when it came to catering. Only Oxford was "good"; five of the sites failed the test completely. Four MSAs were "poor" in the hygiene section, but the high price level increased the number of poor overall ratings to six. It should be said, however, that the price level is generally high in the UK, and the exchange rate against the euro also inflates prices for people from Continental Europe.
In general, you will find a service area at least every 30 miles on British motorways. Alcohol may not be sold in British MSAs. In some cases the main building may be closed at night, but the petrol stations have toilets and usually a small shop, and they are open seven days a week, 24 hours a day.
Slovenia: Only one service area, Tepanje, was tested in Slovenia. It was rated "acceptable". The outdoor facilities were given a straight "very poor"; they were neither safe nor well looked-after. The toilets and mother-and-baby room were also rated "poor", and the negative optical impression was confirmed by the bad results from the hygiene samples. But the ADAC's tester did at least enjoy the spaghetti.
In Slovenia, shops offering food and drinks, daily newspapers, car spares and so on are usually to be found in the petrol-station section, not in the service area. Although the toilets at the petrol stations are frequently locked for safety reasons, the key for free use is available at the cash desk.
The Slovenian automobile club AMZS recommends tourists to pay bills either in cash in tolars (the Slovenian currency) or with a credit card. If you pay cash in sterling or euros, you must expect on a worse exchange rate than in a special bureau de change. You might also be charged a commission of up to three percent.
The Netherlands: The two Dutch service areas tested were Den Ruygen Hoek and Nederweert North. They were both rated "acceptable".
Where there is room for improvement is in the design of the outdoor facilities; they were rated "very poor", as were telephone facilities. There were "good" scores, however, for road safety, catering and service.
Petrol stations are well prepared for customers in the Netherlands. Here there are shops, sometimes even a complete supermarket, and often a snack bar, toilets, a toilet for disabled persons, a shower and telephones. More and more fast-food restaurants like McDonald's or Burger King are being built near service areas. However, there are few affiliated hotels, since you usually arrive at your destination very quickly in this small country. By the way, after leaving the parking area it is usually impossible to drive back to the petrol station.
Belgium: The two sites tested here – Bierges North and Groot Bijgaarden South – managed a rating of "acceptable", albeit low down the scale near the border with "poor".
Here, too, the "very poor" rating for the outdoor facilities leaves nothing to the imagination. In Bierges North, families will find neither picnic tables nor a children's playground. There were also shortcomings in the road-safety and parking category: Pedestrian access from the parking lots to the service area was not completely safe, and disabled persons looked for designated parking stalls in vain. There was also room for improvement in hygiene. Although the toilets looked clean and well looked-after at both sites, the laboratory results were "poor". On the other hand, our testers found the catering and prices "good".
Austria: This year we tested Suben West, Ansfelden North, Gralla East, Arnwiesen, Kasern and Matrei East. Suben West achieved a "good" rating, Matrei East had to accept a "poor"; all the other sites were "acceptable".
The biggest problem this year was the outdoor facilities. All sites failed the test in this category. Ansfelden North, Gralla East and Matrei East offer neither picnic tables nor a children's playground. In Suben West and Arnwiesen, too, travellers have to eat their sandwiches standing up if they don't want to visit the restaurant. There is also no sign of additional leisure facilities such as hiking paths or keep-fit trails. Half of the restaurants only had a restaurant with waiter service. However, our testers were satisfied with the catering at all the sites. In the hygiene field, scores covered the whole spectrum from "good" to "very poor".
Austria has several operator chains, such as Rosenberger, Landzeit, Tourast/Autogrill and Oldtimer; sporadically there are also (usually franchise) service areas run by McDonald's, Eurest, Axxe, Mövenpick oder Servus Europa offering restaurants with waiter service, self-service restaurants and/or market restaurants with a buffet. There are also petrol stations with shops and snack bars. Most petrol stations are open 24 hours a day. This also applies to some of the restaurants run by the chains. Mostly, however, the opening times are from six o'clock in the morning to eleven or twelve at night.
Spain: This popular holiday country is strongly represented in this year's test with eight sites: Les Garrigues South, El Mèdol, La Safor, El Montseny, Belinchón, La Ribera, La Marina and Motilla del Palancar. Les Garrigues South was awarded a "good" rating, Motilla del Palancar had to accept a "poor"; the others were "acceptable".
There is no consistent picture in the areas of road safety and outdoor facilities, with scores ranging from "very good" to "very poor". The hygiene category was more unequivocal: here, the testers gave three "poor" ratings and even one "very poor". Although the laboratory results were "good" in five sites and at least "acceptable" in three, the sanitary facilities and above all the baby-changing facilities were not always convincing. The catering fared well: one "very good" shone next to four "good" ratings; the others were "acceptable".
Italy: The Italian MSAs tested were Secchia West, Campogalliano West, Po East, Adige Brennero West, Medesano West, Cremona South, Giovi West and Plose East. The best four service areas were rated "acceptable", the rest "poor" – so the situation is still characterised by little light and a lot of shade.
Developments are encouraging in the fields of road safety and parking: unlike past years, a "very good" for Adige Brennero West was complemented by the ratings "good" and "acceptable". Marked improvements have evidently been made. The design of the outdoor facilities presents a sad picture, however. All service areas were given a resounding "very poor" in this category. There is no point looking for outdoor children's playgrounds or leisure facilities. The ADAC's testers also criticised the sanitary facilities and hygiene. Only Secchia West and Po East were rated "good"; Campogalliano West and Plose East were "acceptable"; the others proved to be "poor".
The quality of catering varied considerably: Campogalliano West was awarded a "very good", Secchia West, Po East, Adige Brennero West and Giovi West achieved a "good" rating. Medesano West and Cremona South were rated "acceptable". The only disappointing site in this category was Plose East with a "poor". A glance at the prices shows that very good-quality coffee and sandwiches are served at very reasonable prices. The prices of the standard batch of commodities also confirm this trend. Five of the eight tested sites achieved a "good" rating in this category.
By the way, Italian service areas do not build playgrounds where children can play alone, protected from the traffic. The reason given is that, in Italy, children traditionally stay with their parents, and other guests do not feel disturbed by kids racing around noisily in the restaurant.
Germany: Nine service areas were tested here: Vogtland South, Köckern West, Herford North, Bedburger Land East, Neckarburg East, Mahlberg East, Grossenmoor East, Grunewald West and Stillhorn West. In addition, truck stops ('Autohof') were again tested this year: Berg, Wörnitz, Waldlaubersheim, Mellendorf, Gollhofen and Ellwangen. German service areas and truck stops took the first seven places in the European comparison.
The results achieved by the truck stops were encouraging from a German point of view: this year, three sites succeeded in catching up with the leading group. Following catastrophic results in the first year they were included in the test (2002), there was already a noticeable improvement last year, and this was further consolidated this year with exclusively "good" to "acceptable" ratings. The biggest shortcomings in this group this year were again the lack of pedestrian safety in the outdoor area, the lack of parking stalls for mobile homes and towed vehicles, and the lack of leisure facilities.
The overall test winner, however, was a service area. Vogtland South won because of its high level of family friendliness, safely designed outdoor facilities, very good catering, well looked-after sanitary facilities and friendly staff.
The worst site in Germany with a rating of "poor" was also a service area: Hamburg-Stillhorn West. It lost most points in the categories outdoor facilities, indoor facilities, catering and communication. The ADAC's testers did praise the friendliness of the employees, though.
The conclusion: the results of this year's test again vary considerably from country to country. These differences do not always stem exclusively from the quality of the service provided. Sometimes it is also simply a result of country-specific traditions – as in Italy for instance, where the people do not see any need for children's playgrounds or picnic areas. However, the results of one test year should never be interpreted as a representative overall judgement on the respective countries. There is no country in Europe with exclusively "good" or exclusively bad service areas. Sweeping statements are not appropriate here.
EuroTests - EuroTest 2004
