Bamford Travel Centers, LLC is an American chain of travel centers owned by the Bamford Corporation, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. Bamford operates travel centers in 49 U.S. states, as well as commercial rest areas/service areas along major highways (generally referred to as "Houses") in select states, several of which are leased from turnpike operators or are on sites built before January 1, 1960 that were grandfathered in following the enactment of federal restrictions on private rest areas.
History[]
Bamford began opening larger "super centers" in the 1990s, with the first opening in April 1997 along Texas State Highway 6 outside Navasota, Texas. Inspired by European rest areas, primarily British motorway service areas (as well as those found in the US off of select highways in the Northeast, the Midwest, and in Florida), it featured an Exxon fuel station (alongside the company's own fuel station), a Super 8 hotel, and an expansive list of dining options, including Rick Colbert's Smokehouse, Starbucks Coffee, Wendy's, Popeyes, Domino's, Mrs. Fields, TCBY, and the first ever HoJo Express concept from Howard Johnson's (divided into two sectors; a quick service breakfast-to-dinner restaurant, and an ice cream/frozen dessert shop).
Facilities[]
Lodging[]
The majority of motels at Bamford centers, particularly at a number of larger and mid-sized ones, and some of their rest areas, are franchises of Days Inn, Super 8, Holiday Inn Express, or Best Western. They are freestanding buildings.
Food and drink[]
Bamford Travel Centers feature a food court featuring a selection of brands varying from location to location. Among the brands are Applebee's, Arby's, Auntie Anne's, Baja Fresh, Baskin-Robbins, Blimpie, Burger King, Carvel, Chipotle, Cinnabon, Dairy Queen, Denny's, Domino's, Dunkin' Donuts, Earl of Sandwich, Elevation Burger, Häagen-Dazs, Hot Dog on a Stick, Hot 'n Now, Howard Johnson's, IHOP, Jamba Juice, Johnny Rockets, KFC, McDonald's, Mrs. Fields, Pollo Campero, Popeyes, Pizza Hut, Sbarro, Schlotzsky's, Starbucks, Subway, Sweet Frog, Taco Bell, Taco John's, TCBY, Tim Hortons, Wendy's and Wimpy, plus numerous others. In addition to several brands, the Bamford corporation's own restaurant chains, including Rick Colbert's Smokehouse, Winna Winna Chick'n Dinna, and L.A.P. - Love All Pizza, operate at numerous larger centers the company operates, including certain service areas.
Fuel[]
Bamford centers feature fuel islands, as customary for a truck stop/travel center. The stations have nozzles on each side, so tanks on both sides of a semi truck can be filled simultaneously. Bamford offers standard gas and diesel fuel, as well as biofuel and biodiesel in some states. Since the introduction of trucks requiring diesel exhaust fluid, all Bamford fuel islands include pumps for bulk DEF dispensing. Many Bamford centers also offer E-15 fuel.
Retail[]
Bamford centers primarily feature convenience stores, with some larger centers and the service areas featuring expanded retail outlets.
Some Bamford centers feature leased departments from other retailers, with Family Dollar, FYE, Brookstone, and Best Buy Express being the most common; some service areas are less likely to feature leased departments.
Electric vehicle charging[]
Bamford centers feature Tesla Superchargers and ChargePoint stations, so that electric vehicle owners can recharge their vehicles.
Vehicle service[]
Bamford offers truck and car maintenance and repair facilities at all of their travel centers. This includes 24-hour road service, preventative maintenance, tire service, part replacement, oil changes, and light mechanical work.
Every Bamford center features a set of CAT (Certified Automated Truck) scales.
Unique Features of Bamford "Houses"[]
While Bamford's commercial rest areas ("Houses") don't contain all of the amenities listed above (for example, they tend to lack freestanding hotels in certain cases), they do feature numerous amenities that Bamford's standard centers tend to lack, such as visitor information centers, pet areas, outdoor picnic tables, and displays that showcase the areas the centers are in and their history. Another thing that separates the "Houses" from standard Bamford centers is that they each tend to have unique architecture and interior design from one another.