OK, I’ll say it. “I hate drive through’s!”
These inventions of our hurried lifestyle are a completely unnecessary. Sure, they allow coffee and fast food consumers the illusion of getting their product quicker (an illusion because it’s sometimes, but not always true), and the luxury of sitting in their idling vehicles listening to the radio, or perhaps not getting as wet if it’s raining.
The downside of extra emissions are often discussed, but don’t let being sick of hearing about it take away from the value of the argument. Idling is a complete waste of energy and an unnecessary and controllable source of greenhouse gases. We can, and should, take advantage of this small but easily achievable GHG reduction.
Doing so requires more than just non-enforced anti idling bylaws, even if you’ve actually managed to get your community to pass anti idling bylaws. It requires saying no to applications for drive throughs at the planning stage, and finding ways to encourage companies to stop using them. Push comes to shove, it may require that we regulate them out of existence. And yes, I admit, it may even require compensating companies who have already made capital investments around the old rules when they have to spend money modifying their parking lots.
Mostly it requires an attitude shift, and for idling to become as socially unacceptable as drinking and driving. This, along with other necessary attitude shifts like getting away from gas guzzlers, is vital to our future and this time we don’t have a generation to make it happen.
Someone tried to justify the drive through to me the other day on the basis of mum’s with babies who would otherwise A) leave their child in the car while they went in for coffee, or B) go through all the hassle of unloading their child from the car.
Please.
What kind of irresponsible parent leaves their child in the car while they go in for a coffee? Yes, you hear stories, and they’re all despicable, but that’s no justification of why our society needs drive throughs.
And you’d have to unload your child from the car? I’m sorry. Let’s let Bangledesh drown so you don’t have to suffer that inconvenience.
Whatever did our parents do before the age of the drivethrough? Perhaps they actually made their coffee at home, at work, just went without, or maybe they got out of the bloody car. I’ll have to ask my mum.
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I’m with you on this one Glenn, with one caveat – as I see it, drive-throughs do serve a valuable function for “handicap” drivers, especially those who require wheelchairs to get around outside of their vehicles. So my dilemma is how to eliminate the negative effects of drive-throughs without leaving those people high and dry. The attitude shift you mentioned would probably do it.
I’m very doubtful that drive throughs were originally designed and built for “handicap” drivers. The market would not support the capital expense and business are frankly just not that altruistic. I do understand and appreciate your point, however. Perhaps there is a compromise which would serve people with special needs. –Glenn