Should Cities Ban Drive Thrus?

Drive thru lanes may be convenient, but some cities are labeling them as nuisances. They cause traffic, generate emissions, and can cause restaurants to abandon in-person dining. Should they be banned, or is that too far?

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[person]

I can't imagine driving up to a restaurant, seeing 33 cars already in the drive thru, and willingly becoming the 34th.

[AstroV]

I feel like eliminating indoor seating at these places would make the drive thru demand (and the issues with backups) worse, because now you’ve removed any other options for people, and cars take up much more space than some tables and chairs.

[peachezprogramming]

I tried to go through the drive through on my bicycle one time and way denied because it wasn’t a car.

[dernwine]

Opening shot: Cars queuing in the bike lane.

[ripHalo]

How is it a "restaurant" if it doesn't have indoor dinning? That's just a kithcen.

[PeterPutz]

The perfect world. Wake up in your house surrounded by a 2m fence. Go to your car with tinted windows in your garage and leave so you don't speak to your neighbours. Drive to a food place, interact with no-one. Eat the food inside your car, go home. You don't need studies to know suburbian car centric life is terrible. Get a bike, run into people on the street, have chats, organise meet ups, live like humans should.

[garcjr]

Yes, why would I waste my own gas on sitting in line when I can just take advantage of the free air conditioning inside the restaurant.

[switzerland]

As seen from a tourist: the walkable situation would be half as bad, even good, if owners were forced to connect parking lots with some simple walking paths.

[jrm]

Usually the times where I go to a fast food restaurant and find the drive-thru queued up forever, I just go inside and order carryout. It's much quicker and more fuel efficient than waiting in a car line 10 vehicles deep.

[GojiMet]

5:02 "Seniors often hang out at fast-food restaurants"
Yes! This is very true of my McDonalds, under the Ditmars Boulevard elevated station, and the Dunkin' Donuts around the corner. Those are where they hang out for hours and hours. And it's been going on as long as I remember. Then there are the kids who come after-school and do their thing, while waiting out the 15-minute McDonald's App wait-time to get more offers and discounts again.

[mats]

People in this country eat WAY too much fast food anyway..

[pikoliii]

Just one more drive through lane, bro

[LoveStallion]

My hometown in SoCal banned drive-thrus for many years, resulting in one of the few In-N-Out locations without one.

[ponyote]

Here in the Greater Seattle region, a lot of fast food places have adopted a new 'trick'. You order at the driver-thru, but then they wave you to the parking lot to wait for your food. Even if there's no one behind me.

[sirjuly]

I can attest to older generations socializing in restaurant chains. When in middle and high school, after visiting the dentist, but before I would return to school, we would stop by Burger King. I would always see a group of older ppl, not related, catching up and talking about their lives. It’s nice to see that. I just wish my town had more than just crappy chain stores for them to find a 3rd place in.

[jspihlman]

I would do the curbside pick up, but I don't want to download 30 apps just to have every fast food place, even if they do rewards and I get free food or discounts. That's my issue with the mobile ordering feature.

[roberthoople]

@1:03 - The fact that we now treat whole buildings like it's as disposable as a light bulb, is a trend as terrifying as more lanes are.

[AaronSmith-sxez]

Drive thru is crazy if you think about it... Many foods can not be eaten practically while driving safely. In fact in many states you can be arrested for eating while driving. Eating in or carry out is preferred...plus you can wash your hands before eating. Another interesting trend is restaurants getting rid of dine in options...especially pizza places. This is a horrible idea though...again many foods aren't practical to eat in a car (like a pizza) and if you're on vacation or traveling, you might not have a local dwelling to use to eat the meal.

[joeb]

The drive up only concept generally doesn't like pedestrian or bicycle traffic which is a shame. Put a few benches/tables outside with an umbrella, away from the existing drive through, and you can grab a quick bite instead of having to carry the food somewhere else.

One teeny change I made is to always use a reusable cup for my drink. So I haven't gone through a drive through in a long time (except for during covid naturally). I park and go get my stuff.

[dan_youtube]

I can't explain how frustrating it is when restaurants have only drive through and me driving a semi truck can't fit in there, not easily anyway. So I have to walk between 2 bumpers hoping I don't become a big Mac myself