Editing Rest area (section)

{{Short description|Public area, usually adjacent to limited-access highway, used for rest from travel}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{Redirect-multi|3|Rest stop|Resto|Lay-by|other uses|Rest stop (disambiguation)|and|Resto (disambiguation)|the form of installment purchase|Layaway}}
[[File:Bundesautobahn 24 - Linumer Bruch Nord.JPG|thumb|upright=1.35|Aerial photograph of the ''Linumer Bruch Nord'' rest area at the [[Bundesautobahn 24|A 24]] motorway in Germany]]
[[File:Autohof Nordheide - Rade - Hamburg Süd.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|Fuel dispensers at an [[Truck stop|autohof]] near a German [[autobahn]] in [[Lower Saxony]]. Autohöfe, just like rest areas, provide travellers a place to refuel, as well as eat, and rest.|alt=]]

A '''rest area''' is a public facility located next to a large thoroughfare such as a [[motorway]], [[Limited-access road|expressway]], or [[highway]], at which drivers and passengers can rest, eat, or refuel without exiting onto secondary roads.  Other names include [[motorway service area]] (UK), '''services''' (UK),  '''travel plaza''', '''rest stop''', '''oasis''' (US), '''service area''', '''rest and service area''' ('''RSA'''), '''resto''',  '''service plaza''', '''lay-by''', '''service centre''', and '''onroute''' (Ontario, Canada). Facilities may include park-like areas, [[filling station|fuel station]]s, [[public toilet]]s, water fountains, restaurants, and [[Holding tank dump station|dump and fill station]]s for [[Caravan (towed trailer)|caravans]] and motorhomes.

A rest area with limited to no public facilities is a '''lay-by''', '''parking area''',  '''scenic area''', or '''scenic overlook'''.  Along some highways and roads are services known as wayside parks, roadside parks, or '''picnic areas'''.