From the archive, 16 April 1959: No pubs on new motorway

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/16/pubs-motorway-alcohol-licence-meals

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The construction of licensed premises or bars will not be permitted on the London-Birmingham motorway, but lessees of each of the four service areas may apply to the local justices for a table licence to serve liquor with meals. This was stated by the Minister of Transport, Mr Watkinson, in a parliamentary written answer yesterday.

The Minister said he was now prepared to consider proposals for the development of two service areas - at Newport Pagnell and Watford (Northamptonshire). The successful applicant would be granted a 50-year lease of the service area - about five acres on each side of the motorway, a small plot being kept by the Minister for a highways maintenance and police post.

No firm would be allowed to develop more than one of the two areas. Good standards of construction would be required and designs would have to be approved by the Ministry and the planning authorities.

The minimum requirements to be met by the lessees are one petrol station and one transport café on each side of the motorway, and a cafeteria, with or without a restaurant, on one side or the other. The Minister intends that there should be “a reasonable choice” of brands of motor fuel and lubricants at each petrol station.

The other two service areas - near Toddington (Beds) and Rothersthorpe (Northants) - are not to be developed at this stage, but highways maintenance compounds and police posts will be built there. The Minister has decided not to proceed with the acquisition of a fifth site on the St Albans bypass - the subject of a compulsory purchase order last year - “because of the hardship that would have been caused.”

On the supply of liquor at service areas, Mr Watkinson stated that he had carefully considered the representations made to him.

On his statement that lessees might apply to justices for a table licence, a spokesman for the Ministry said last night that it was “a broad statement of policy.” It appears, therefore, that the justices will be left to decide the exact terms of the licence.

Although to the layman the meaning of “meals” may be obvious, it is not certain that the table licences mentioned by the Minister will require motorists to order a full meal if they want a drink. A common practice in certain licensed clubs is for customers to order with their drink a sandwich which does duty for a meal. A spokesman of the Home Office thought last night that table licences granted by the justices did not, as a rule, define what constituted a meal.