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Moto official website — ToddingtonMotorway Services Online — ToddingtonMotorway Services Guide — Toddington
{{Transport in Bedfordshire 1964 establishments in England M1 motorway service stations Buildings and structures in Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire District Commercial buildings completed in 1964 Economy of Bedfordshire Moto motorway service stations Transport in Bedfordshire
Toddington Services is a
's '' Knowing Me Knowing You'' radio series in 1993, motorway service station
Motorway service areas in the United Kingdom and Ireland, also known as services or service stations, are rest areas where drivers can leave a motorway to refuel/recharge, rest, eat and drink, shop or stay in an on-site overnight hotel. The vas ...
on the M1 motorway
The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass, which lat ...
between junctions 11A and 12, just north of Luton
Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...
and Dunstable
Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...
in Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...
, England. It takes its name from the nearby village of Toddington Toddington could be
*Toddington, Bedfordshire
**Toddington services, M1 motorway
*Toddington, Gloucestershire
**Toddington railway station
Toddington railway station serves the village of Toddington in Gloucestershire, England. Since 1984 it h ...
. It is owned by Moto Hospitality
Moto Hospitality, branded as Moto, is a British service station operator which operates 59 motorway service stations across the United Kingdom. It is currently the UK's largest service area operator.
History Operations (2001–2020)
Granada ...
.
History
Toddington Services partially opened atWhitsun
Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian High Holy Day of Pentecost. It is the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the Ho ...
in the spring of 1964; the rest of the main 800-seat restaurant opened in early 1965. The section of M1 it is on opened in November 1959. When opened, it was the first service area on the journey north from London on the M1, and the UK's largest. It was the UK's eighth motorway service station, and the M1's third service area; the M1 had the UK's first two motorway service areas.
It was Granada Motorway Services's first motorway service area; its next would be Frankley
Frankley is a village and civil parish in Worcestershire. The modern Frankley estate is part of the New Frankley civil parish in Birmingham, and has been part of the city since 1995. The parish has a population of 122.
History
Frankley is li ...
in the north of Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
on the M5 in 1966. Granada Motorway Services Ltd (now called Moto Motorway Services) was incorporated on 28 August 1962. From January 2001 to September 2006 it was known as Compass
A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself with ...
Motorway Services.
Other Granada services further up the M1 were Trowell
Trowell is a village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England. It lies a few miles west of Nottingham, in the borough of Broxtowe on the border with Derbyshire. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,568, falling to 2,378 at ...
in Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
and Woolley Edge in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
. By the end of the 1980s Granada had twenty motorway service areas, being headquartered at Toddington.
Structure
Around one mile south, on the western side of the M1, is the large Sundon Substation in Chalton, a terminus of many pylon lines of the National Grid. The eastern side of the car park (trucks) is underneath a 275kV pylon line, which terminates at Sundon. Around 300 metres to the east is theMidland Main Line
The Midland Main Line is a major railway line in England from London to Nottingham and Sheffield in the Midlands. It comprises the lines from London's St Pancras station via Leicester, Derby/Nottingham and Chesterfield in the East Midlands.
...
, between Harlington railway station
Harlington railway station is located in Bedfordshire. It is named after the village of Harlington, on the outskirts of which it is located, but serves a wide rural area including the larger villages of Toddington and Barton-le-Clay.
History ...
(to the north) and Leagrave railway station
Leagrave railway station is located in Leagrave, a suburb in the north of Luton in Bedfordshire, England. Leagrave station is situated on the Midland Main Line 33¾ miles (54 km) north of London St Pancras International. The station i ...
(to the south). The site is accessed off the motorway via a private road from the B530, which connects to junction 12 ( A5120, for Flitwick and Woburn) to the north. The Icknield Way
The Icknield Way is an ancient trackway in southern and eastern England that runs from Norfolk to Wiltshire. It follows the chalk escarpment that includes the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills.
Background
It is generally said to be, within ...
passes east-west north and south of the site.
Moto Hospitality
Moto Hospitality, branded as Moto, is a British service station operator which operates 59 motorway service stations across the United Kingdom. It is currently the UK's largest service area operator.
History Operations (2001–2020)
Granada ...
, which operates 58 motorway service stations, is actually headquartered at the southbound site.
The first M&S Simply Food at a Moto site opened at Toddington in 2003.
In popular culture
As a location in the 1972 film '' Fear In the Night''. In the last episode ofBBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...Alan Partridge
Alan Gordon Partridge is a comedy character portrayed by the English actor Steve Coogan. A parody of British television personalities, Partridge is a tactless and inept broadcaster with an inflated sense of celebrity. Since his debut in 1991, h ...
's last guest dies on air. Partridge decides to observe a minute's silence, but realises - as it is radio - that a minute of 'dead air' is impossible. He therefore intersperses the silence with an occasional utterance. Thus he suggests to listeners on the road to pull off and join in the minute's silence. He even goes as far as naming a few service stations where they can park their cars. One of them is Toddington. In episode two of the television series ''Knowing Me Knowing You'' Partridge introduces his guest Daniella Forrest (Minnie Driver
Amelia Fiona Jessica "Minnie" Driver (born 31 January 1970) is an English actress. She rose to prominence with her break-out role in 1995's '' Circle of Friends''. She went on to star in a wide range of films including the cult classic ''Grosse ...
) with another reference to Toddington: "So, now, my first guest is intelligent, witty, a woman of the world with a figure that would stop the traffic dead, both ways on the M1 if she were to wiggle across the footbridge at Toddington Service Station."
In 2004, Toddington Services featured in series 4, episode 3 of ''Top Gear
Top Gear may refer to:
* "Top gear", the highest gear available in a vehicle's manual transmission
Television
* ''Top Gear'' (1977 TV series), a British motoring magazine programme
* ''Top Gear'' (2002 TV series), a relaunched version of the or ...
'' with the three presenters comparing a Volvo 760
The Volvo 700 series is a range of executive cars produced by the Swedish manufacturer Volvo Cars from 1982 to 1992. The 700 series was introduced in 1982 with the luxurious 760, followed two years later by the lower priced 740 which capitalize ...
, Audi 80
The Audi 80 is a compact executive car produced by the Audi subdivision of the Volkswagen Group across four generations from 1966 to 1996. It shared its platform with the Volkswagen Passat from 1973 to 1986 and was available as a saloon, and s ...
and Rover 416GTi before proceeding up the M1 and M6 to Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
.
References
External links
Moto official website — Toddington
{{Transport in Bedfordshire 1964 establishments in England M1 motorway service stations Buildings and structures in Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire District Commercial buildings completed in 1964 Economy of Bedfordshire Moto motorway service stations Transport in Bedfordshire