Other high-traffic stations include BP\u2019s Grayston Drive, Shell\u2019s Glenhove and Cosmo City Convenience Centres, and Sasol Waterfall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other insights from the data show that petrol stations are still hotspots for convenience shopping, becoming the default stop after traditional retail outlets close for the night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“This shift is clearly visible in the data, where the proportion of convenience-led visits spikes between 19h00 and 06h00,” Lightstone said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If 1% of all service station stops occur at midnight, but 2% of convenience stops happen then, it gives a convenience score of 2, indicating that consumers are twice as likely to be stopping for non-fuel reasons at that time.<\/p>\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Top-joburg-petrol-station-brand.png\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nPetrol stations in South Africa are changing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Different petrol station brands are also seeing different usage patterns, Lightstone said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For example, Astron service stations experience higher peak visits between 06h00 and 10h00, pointing to a commuter-focused routine that\u2019s unique among its peers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Astron has become a new flagship petrol station brand in South Africa, taking over the previous Caltex brand and network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following Astron Energy\u2019s acquisition of Chevron\u2019s Southern African assets in 2017, the group started a massive rebranding campaign in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Twenty regional teams across South Africa worked simultaneously to rebrand forecourts to Astron Energy, hitting the halfway mark in November 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the end of the rebranding exercise, there will be over 850 Astron Energy service stations in the country – easily the second largest network after Engen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Engen currently leads with over 1,000 stations in the country, making its popularity among drivers a logical outcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shell announced it would be exiting the service station business in the country back in 2024, and is still in the process of offloading the network to potential buyers<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whichever group takes over the network will be sitting with almost 600 service stations\u2014the third largest in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Total Energies has the fourth largest network with 550 stations, followed by BP, with 500 stations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Contrasting Shell’s exit from the game, the other fuel retailers have all committed to remaining and expanding their networks in the country, including Engen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n