How Drive Thrus Break Walkability

Drive thrus provide a lot of convenience for people in cars, but they aren't good for cities.

 
Sources:

The Food Institute | Americans Avoid Businesses Without a Drive-Thru

QSR Magazine | The 2023 QSR Drive-Thru Report

Adam Chandler | Drive Thru Dreams

Aerial shots of Meridian's In-N-Out grand opening

First In-N-Out Burger to come to the state of Washington

Renton Parking & Stacking Requirements

Donald Shoup | The trouble with minimum parking requirements

Donald Shoup | Truth in Transportation Planning

FDOT | Application of Demographic Analysis to Pedestrian Safety

The Conversation | Drive-throughs are busier than ever during the pandemic – but they’re hotspots for air pollution

Coventry University | New research reveals high levels of air pollution which could harm health of drive thru staff and customers

Verge | Taco Bell opens its first ‘Defy’ restaurant that prioritizes ordering via app

MPR News | Minneapolis bans new drive-thrus

Capitol Hill Seatle Blog | There is a Five Guys coming to First Hill

Bicyclists, pedestrians now allowed to use drive thru windows in Portland

[JKRBW]

Add this to the, "why are kids these days always online?" Where do we expect junior high and young high school kids to peacefully assemble? Summer vacation is upon us and these kids have nowhere to go.

[svbahs]

I genuinely despise drive thru only restaurants

[famitory]

ironically walk-up windows are actually fantastic and beloved in the context of a walkable space. we call them street food vendors.

[kevley]

After seeing walkable cities in person these videos of drive throughs next to stroads looks utterly dystopian.

[jordangassaway]

That chik fil a in the beginning backs up into the street at lot at peak times. It's kinda dangerous because it's so close to the intersection and so that lane is basically blocked from the other side, causing drivers to pull all kinds of stunts to get into the other lane.

[TheStickCollector]

Considering that we reduce dining spots because we always drive there says something.

Positive feedback loop like induced demand.

[yeyeTF]

i found myself in a small town while driving from DC to Chicago. i was driving a moving truck as i was moving. i got a hotel room for the night and needed a place to eat. the only food open i could get (again, small town) was a single McDonalds. they are open 24/7 they advertised! but when i walked to the mcdonalds about 800m away from my hotel (i was the only one walking in town) found that it was drive-thru 24/7 and i wouldve had to wait until 9am when they opened for seated customers. i walked thru the drive thru and got told to heck off. then came a car and basically said "theyre with me" and finally got my food. why do i need a vehicle to order food at a mcdonalds drive thru? i felt like a second class citizen in that moment. the only place in town to get food at that hour was telling me to beat it bc i didnt have a car... well i had a uhaul but it wouldnt fit under the height limit bar lmao

[daveassanowicz]

I live in Floriduh, where they drive big dumb POS monster trucks that don't fit under drive-thru overhangs, nor can they reach the window or buttons on the ATM at the drive-thru banks.

[davidhutchinson]

So glad I gave up using a car years ago. Once you do that, you truly understand how repulsive cars are. And drivers in the US are more dangerous than ever. Saw one the other day as I was entering the crosswalk with the right of way. This person cruised right on through the red light. Glad I saw them because they sure as hell didn't see me.

[creaturexxii]

My father who works as a pharmacist in the US despises drive thru both as a customer and as the staff behind the window.

[JakobHill]

Starbucks just announced they're closing their River/Osborne location in Winnipeg, right in the middle of one of Canada's densest neighborhoods. News outlets linked the closure to an unprovoked attack at a neighboring liquor store. However I have come to understand Starbucks closed the location because there was no way of retrofitting it for a drive-thru. The good news is there's an independent coffee shop across the street.

[spencer]

the mention of the ban on drive thurs in Minneapolis shows the potential of civic engagement. involvement in local government can be incredibly impactful on the future of cities that are subject to urban sprawl. write to city council members and advocate for the change you want to see

[realDonaIdTruck]

I tied biking through a McDonald's with a closed lobby at night, that's when I learned drive throughs don't serve people outside a car at all. Except in two cities where the city requires them to.

[barryrobbins]

What is really annoying is suddenly finding 20 invisible people in line in front of you because they ordered with an app.

[mattf]

Many fast food dining rooms in my area never reopened after covid. "Staffing"...

[keithmcmanus]

Hot take: Drive-thrus are bad for driving. Drivers need to take breaks a lot more often than they do. The drive-thru adds to driver entitlement to never have to slow down or stop for anything. Drive-thrus further isolate drivers and passengers from interacting with other people leading to even more antisocial behavior on the roads.

[ThrowAwayAsinine]

Yeah I fucking hate drive-thrus I also hate this popular thing where a lot of places are switching to drive-thru only like they are a Dutch Bros or something; I hate car dependency and it's ever growing consequences, not many things I hate; but I hate this for real.

[DJ_BROBOT]

IRONICIALLY...THIS LOCATION USED TO HAVE INDOOR SEATING BEFORE THE REMODEL TWO YEARS AGO. This is why I goto the other Chick Fil A in nearby Kirkland. This Bellevue location is always packed and on some hot-garbage. And thanks for clarifying your Seattle neighborhood as suburb faux pas...I was like why is he calling these neighborhoods as such ?

[shivtim]

We have a similar chick-fil-A that was built right on the Atlanta beltline (a bike/ped path with planned transit). It’s such a disaster that city council passed an ordinance banning any new drive-thrus near the Beltline. Progress!

[elnegrobembon]

I thought you already made a video on how Drive-thrus are horrible for walkable communities, but this topic does warrant more attention to be fair.
They're usually located on a stroad where car traffic is plentiful. Often in some kind of strip mall with other drive-thru spot and/or a huge parking wasteland, so they make terrible use of land resources. And it's usually in some depressing-looking spot where there's rarely people outside cars.
But it feels like drive-thrus aren't the actual problem. It's more like a symptom (and a logical result) of the main problem, which is car-centric development.