They are renowned for high prices, poor food and dirty toilets. But motorway service stations are getting a raw deal from "anachronistic" government regulations, according to one leading operator.

RoadChef, which runs 29 sites on Britain's road network, yesterday announced it was changing its name to RoadChef Costa Coffee - because a new monicker was the only way to get around laws that ban advertising to motorists.

Little-known rules dating from the 1950s impose strict limits on rest areas. Roadsigns notifying motorists that they are approaching a service station cannot display brandnames and are restricted to generic symbols for beds, food, petrol pumps and lavatories.

Keen to avoid turning service stations into "destinations", post-war governments banned operators from having more than 5,000 sq ft of retail space or from having meeting rooms holding more than 15 people.

Supermarkets selling take-away food are largely prohibited, and the sale of alcohol is banned - even for overnight guests at motorway hotels.

Martin Grant, chief executive of RoadChef, has called for a review of the framework: "Britain being Britain, once you've put a set of rules in, they just sit there until somebody makes a bit of fuss about them. They're very peculiar regulations and they're completely out of step with the modern day."

A road safety bill included in this week's Queen's speech included measures to create French-style "aires" allowing motorists to stretch their legs on long journeys.

The Department for Transport recommends that drivers take a 15-minute break every two hours to reduce the risk of accidents caused by fatigue.

Bert Morris, director of the AA Motoring Trust, said drivers should be allowed to see the brand of petrol station or restaurant they were approaching before they pulled off the motorway. A recent Europe-wide study by the trust put Britain's service stations at the bottom of the league table for quality and value.

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said branded advertising on motorway signs would "hamper clarity and could be distracting". He said the basic framework of the present regulations was likely to be retained, although the agency was happy to listen to "points of concern" from operators.