Industries
Automotive, Roadside & Future Fuels
We collaborate to offer clients bespoke solutions for every stage of acquiring, developing, owning, occupying and disposing of automotive & roadside property.
Automotive, Roadside & Future Fuels
With more than 50 years of experience in Automotive, Roadside and Future Fuels Real Estate, we provide expert, tailored advice at every phase of asset ownership and management. Our multi-disciplinary team works closely with occupiers, landlords, lenders, investors and developers to deliver practical solutions regardless of market conditions. Whether you are expanding a portfolio, optimising an existing asset, securing planning consent or planning an exit, our dedicated teams provide hands on support throughout the process. Our specialists combine technical expertise with an in-depth understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the Automotive, Roadside and Future Fuels sectors, helping clients make informed decisions and achieve their objectives with confidence.
This breadth of experience enables us to identify opportunities, anticipate market trends and deliver commercially focused solutions that give our clients a competitive advantage. With offices in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Huntingdon and Manchester, we combine local market insight with a nationwide perspective. Our Automotive, Roadside & Future Fuels specialists are well placed to support projects of any size and complexity across the UK.
Our Services include:
- Lease Advisory
- Rating
- National Agency
- Private Sector/Promotional
- Applications
- Investment
- Disposals & Acquisitions
Our Expertise
- Car Dealerships: We have extensive experience advising on dealership assets, helping clients navigate market transformation, optimise property strategies and maximise long term value.
- Petrol stations/Forecourts: Our specialist expertise across the petrol forecourt sector means we can support clients through changing consumer demand and the transition towards alternative fuels, while identifying opportunities to enhance asset performance and maximise returns.
- EV Charging: With dedicated expertise in EV charging infrastructure, we help clients identify, secure and maximise opportunities arising from the transition to electric vehicles. Supporting successful projects through careful site selection, strategic planning and navigation of key challenges such as planning considerations, and grid constraints, our experts guide you through the process with ease.
- MSAs (Motorway Service Areas)/RSAs (Roadside Service Areas): Our in depth understanding of these complex roadside locations helps clients maximise asset performance, enhance value and respond to evolving consumer and operational demands.
- Car parks: We provide detailed advice on car park assets across the UK, helping clients navigate acquisitions, development opportunities and the effective management of their property portfolios.
- Truck stops: Advising on truck stops and HGV service facilities across the UK, we support clients from sourcing site locations, securing planning permission, through to development, asset management and disposal.
With the Automotive, Roadside and Future Fuels sectors rapidly growing, our experts are well placed to create new opportunities for investors, operators, occupiers and landowners alike. To enquire about our services, contact a member of our team.
FAQs
The automotive and roadside sector is evolving far beyond traditional car sales and fuel retail. As vehicle technology, consumer behaviour and freight networks continue to evolve, demand for strategically located sites is increasing. Rapleys helps investors, developers, landowners and operators identify where these long-term opportunities exist. Through planning expertise, property advice, valuation and development consultancy, we help clients unlock the full potential of roadside assets.
The transition to electric charging, hydrogen, biofuels and other low carbon technologies is reshaping how roadside locations are designed, operated and valued. Future ready sites require more than simply installing new infrastructure; they demand careful consideration of planning, power capacity, land use, customer dwell times and changing commercial models. Rapleys works with clients to assess the viability of existing assets and identify opportunities to future-proof portfolios.
The most valuable roadside assets are those capable of adapting to changing consumer demands and transport technologies. Accessibility, visibility and traffic volumes remain important, but future performance increasingly depends on flexibility, mixed-use potential, digital infrastructure, sustainable energy provision and the ability to attract multiple revenue streams. Rapleys advises clients on how to maximise both immediate performance and long-term asset value.
Roadside property is no longer viewed as a single-use asset. Investors are increasingly seeking developments that combine mobility services with retail, food and beverage, last-mile logistics, leisure and workplace facilities. This diversification creates more resilient income streams while responding to evolving customer behaviour and future transport infrastructure.
Future proofing requires more than responding to today’s market conditions. Businesses need to understand emerging technologies, regulatory changes, environmental targets and shifting patterns of vehicle ownership and mobility. Rapleys help clients take a proactive approach to portfolio strategy and ownership. By combining planning, development, valuation, agency and consultancy expertise, we identify opportunities to enhance asset performance, unlock development potential and position property portfolios to benefit from the next generation of roadside and mobility infrastructure.
Get in touch
Key contacts
Gain national and local expertise through our multidisciplinary teams of experts.
Our track record
Market Valuation and acquisition advice on Hatfields Motor Group
Pendragon Plc
Disposal of Former Citroen dealership – St Mary’s Way, Stockport
Sytner Group
Disposal of former Land Rover property, Riverside Park, Northampton
Timely disposal following Land Rover’s relocation, minimising the void period
Lookers Plc
Redevelopment of York Road, Battersea
Instructed to maximise the redevelopment potential of a VW site
Private Client
New to industry petrol filling station, West Sussex
Secured planning permission for a petrol filling station on a greenfield site in rural West Sussex
Kwik Fit
Acquisition for Kwik Fit, Atex Business Park, Stowmarket
Instructed by Kwik Fit as national retained acquisition agents
Lookers Plc
Disposal of Units 4-5 Wave Trade Park, Acton
Instructed to consider disposal options for Lookers on surplus units
Private Client
New prototype sales building at a service station, Guildford
Secured planning permission for a 2-storey sales building and forecourt upgrades
Milton Keynes Parks Trust
Roadside development, Brecklands, Milton Keynes
Created value out of a little used car park through the development of two drive-thru units
Gemini Accident Repair Centres
Technical due diligence surveys across a portfolio of 38 properties across the UK
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