| Lancaster (Forton) Services | |
|---|---|
| The Pennine Tower | |
| County | Lancashire |
| Road | M6 |
| Coordinates | |
| Operator | Moto Hospitality |
| Previous operator(s) | Top Rank |
| Date opened | 1965[1] |
| Website | Moto |
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Lancaster (Forton) services (Lancashire)
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Lancaster (Forton) services is a motorway service station, between junctions 32 and 33 of the M6 motorway in England. The nearest city is Lancaster, about seven miles (11 km) to the north. The station is operated by Moto.
Like many older service stations, it has an all-weather enclosed bridge which enables travellers to use both the northbound and southbound facilities. In 2005 this bridge had work carried out to strengthen it to withstand the impact of an HGV.[2]
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Opened in 1965 with the name Forton services, it was the second service station to open on the motorway (Charnock Richard being the first), and is named after the nearby village of Forton. The architect was T.P. Bennett and Son and it was originally operated by Top Rank.
The services is notable for an unusual hexagonal concrete tower on the northbound side, named The Pennine Tower, which originally housed an up-market restaurant and a sun deck. The tower was designed to resemble an Air Traffic Control Tower and is a prominent local landmark. The tower closed to the public in 1989 due to various health and safety concerns, and is only used for storage and occasional staff training.[3] The original pentagon-shaped elevators which serviced the tower are still used to service the ground floor and first floor of the building.
The following facilities can be found at Lancaster:[4]
| Previous: Charnock Richard |
Motorway service stations on the M6 Motorway |
Next: Burton-in-Kendal |
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