ONE of the country’s greenest motorway service areas has been officially reopened nearly two years after it was destroyed by fire.

Owner Moto has rebuilt Cherwell Valley Services with a £10m state-of-the-art zero carbon eco-building, using rain water for flushing toilets, ground source heat pumps to warm the building, and solar panels.

The car park boasts an electric vehicle charging point.

Moto said work is due to begin soon on the UK’s first service area wind turbine which will provide electricity for the 23.5-hectare site.

Transport Minister Mike Penning officially reopened the new services, off junction 10 of the M40, at Ardley, near Bicester, on Tuesday.

Mr Penning said: “Motorway service areas help keep road users safe by giving an opportunity for drivers to take a break and the Government is committed to working with operators to ensure that facilities on offer are improved.

“This Government aims to be the greenest ever and I’m pleased to see that the improved facility is making an important contribution towards a more sustainable future.”

Moto chief executive Tim Moss said: “We believe that Cherwell Valley will set the benchmark for buildings of this type.

“It embodies our strategy to reduce our carbon footprint through its use of renewable or low impact energy sources.

It’s a building that’s in tune with the demands of 21st century travel.”

At its peak, the 2010 fire – one of the biggest the Oxfordshire Fire Service had dealt with for years – saw 120 firefighters drafted in to tackle the blaze. No one was injured.