London Gateway services

London Gateway services is the southernmost motorway service station on the M1 motorway, located between Junctions 2 and 4 north of London, England.[1]

London Gateway Services
The main building
London Gateway services (Greater London)
Information
County	Greater London
Road	M1
Coordinates:	51.631°N 0.264°W / 51.631; -0.264
Operator	Welcome Break
Previous name(s)	Scratchwood Services
Date opened	1969
Website	Welcome Break

It opened in 1969, being run by Forte, and was opened as Scratchwood Services. It is built adjacent to the site of the proposed junction 3 of the M1 with a spur to the A1. This link was never built and the intended roundabout junction was not completed, instead being adapted to provide access to the service area. However, traffic travels the wrong way around the junction, with some sharp turns on the slip roads.

On 6 September 1997, large numbers of people came to the service station to witness the passing of the funeral hearse of Diana, Princess of Wales[2] on its way along the M1 from central London to her burial place in Althorp, Northamptonshire.

Ramada Hotel, London Gateway Services

A reserved section of the current service area is a major long-distance coach service interchange.

Planning permission for a Tesla Supercharger consisting of 32 stalls to be built at the site [3] was granted on 18 May 2018,[4] though this is yet to open.

The guns in both forward turrets on the museum ship HMS Belfast, moored between Tower Bridge and London Bridge some 11.7 miles away in the centre of London, are elevated and trained on the London Gateway Motorway Services Area.[5]