Petroleum Station

The Petroleum Station is a Combine checkpoint located along the Coast.

Overview
Formerly a standard gas station located near a metal bridge, it is occupied by Combine forces, monitoring the road traffic and blocking the bridge to unauthorized vehicles with a Force Field powered by an APC parked nearby, used as a generator.

The station comprises several buildings varying in size, the station shop with a counter and a bathroom, three gas pumps, two garages, two trucks and a big gas tank right in front of the station itself, on the opposite of the road.

It is unknown if the station was once used by the Resistance, as no solid trace of recent occupation predating the Combine's can be found. The only Resistance presence are right before the bridge as the corpse of a burned Citizen lying near the first Crossbow to be found and another dead Citizen behind the big gas tank, who apparently shot himself with a Magnum.

Half-Life 2
Gordon Freeman passes by the Petroleum Station during his journey along the Coast with his Scout Car. A few turns before, he is ambushed by Overwatch Soldiers that make an electrical pole explode, causing rocks to fall on the road. Another ambush ensues, this time with a wrecked truck and explosive barrels barring the way. Rollermines also fill the surroundings.

Right before reaching the former gas station itself, Freeman finds the Crossbow for the first time. Being hidden from the station by a small hill, he can use it for the first time on a Overwatch Soldier stationed high near the station's sign, and pin him to it. Going back to the Scout Car and slaloming between other wrecks, he must clear the way for his car by disabling the Force Field located at the end of the bridge. Proceeding to the station on foot, he dispatches all Overwatch Soldiers stationed there and removes the parking wedges that are preventing the APC from falling off the cliff, making it slip and crash below, disabling the bridge Force Field and thus allowing him to continue his journey.

Trivia

 * The three pumps can be destroyed by firearms or explosives. They can also be found near the White Forest Inn in Episode Two, although they cannot be destroyed anymore. The preview image for the gas pump model also reveals it originally had the temporary name "Cetaxo", an anagram of the actual gas brand name "Texaco".
 * Removing the APC's parking wedges can be achieved by several means, the Gravity Gun being the most convenient way.

List of appearances

 * Half-Life 2