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Can I ride my bike through a drive-thru?

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Road Cycling “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.” -- Ernest Hemingway

Can I ride my bike through a drive-thru?

Old 07-03-19, 04:40 AM
  #76  
downhillmaster
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Originally Posted by CliffordK
Cycling can still lead to sweating even in mild temps, and it does get hot every once in a while. And, I dislike leaving big sweat spots on anything I touch, or anywhere I sit. One of the reasons I stopped carrying my wallet in my pocket... which leads to other problems as some stores insist on singling out cyclists to take their "purse" and valuables.
Seriously?
It was silly enough when you felt the need to describe being in a restaurant as cooped up and stuffy.
Now your issue is where you leave your sweat spots?
Yep. Restaurants should forego all the logistic and liability issues of cyclists/pedestrians using drive-thrus so that they don’t force their patrons to feel cooped up and/or awkward about where they leave their sweat

Last edited by downhillmaster; 07-03-19 at 05:54 AM.
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Old 07-03-19, 12:43 PM
  #77  
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Originally Posted by downhillmaster
Seriously?
It was silly enough when you felt the need to describe being in a restaurant as cooped up and stuffy.
Now your issue is where you leave your sweat spots?
Yep. Restaurants should forego all the logistic and liability issues of cyclists/pedestrians using drive-thrus so that they don’t force their patrons to feel cooped up and/or awkward about where they leave their sweat
Heh, heh.

If you think that's goofy, you should ride around Portlandia sometime -- frankly, that show understates things. With regards to the drive thrus, people seriously try to present it as an ADA type of issue
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Old 08-08-19, 07:21 AM
  #78  
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Yes, if you can go on foot you can also go on a bike
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Old 08-08-19, 04:09 PM
  #79  
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Originally Posted by banerjek
Heh, heh.

If you think that's goofy, you should ride around Portlandia sometime -- frankly, that show understates things. With regards to the drive thrus, people seriously try to present it as an ADA type of issue
I definitely feel it's a political issue - it's like how folks assume there's nothing wrong with making people listen to commercial radio at work.

Just because most people don't mind listening to radio ads, doesn't mean it's okay to inflict that psychological warfare on people who don't consent.

Just because the car lobby has succeeded in crippling public transport and making society revolve around car use, doesn't make it okay to do their work for them.

It's like living in a fish tank sponsored by Coke. I can taste it, dunno about you.
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Old 08-08-19, 04:25 PM
  #80  
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I pulled into a mcDogballes drive through the other day/week on a loaded touring bike. I looked at the the big menu screens a bit and no one asked for my order. I said "helloooo?" and they turned off the menu screens. That's some weird passive aggressiveness...
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Old 08-09-19, 11:22 AM
  #81  
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Originally Posted by max5480
you guys are missing the big issue here!!
This guy wants a donut. Give that **** up, go to the store, and buy some ****ing broccoli.

BTW, I ride through the drive through bank line all the time no problems.
Originally Posted by Vicelord
about what? The first quote was my disagreement with companies policies on this, and the second quote was what ticks me off about the 17 year old kids who have no ability to think for themselves while working the drive through window.
Where I work, they fire people don’t follow protocols.
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Old 08-09-19, 11:53 AM
  #82  
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Obtl
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Old 08-09-19, 03:33 PM
  #83  
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Originally Posted by Runner 1


Just an update -- I did get some Krispy Kreme (a dozen). And man were they delicious Unfortunately, I was unable to eat them all in one sitting this time.
Luckily, on September 28, 2011, OP got his donut.

Unfortunately he does not specify whether he got them at the drive-through.
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Old 08-10-19, 09:49 AM
  #84  
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When I show up at my local Chik-fil-A the drive-thru assistant insists on helping me. I used to lean my bike against the window and order inside, but the last time I went this kid who takes orders from people waiting in line just about insisted I let him take my order. They even put the order in a plastic bag so it wouldn't leak when I crammed in my back pack.
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Old 08-10-19, 10:49 AM
  #85  
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Eight years since I posted in this thread and I still have the same attitude and experiences. Although I guess I neglected to ever explain it to my wife and son, since they got all up in arms about a Starbucks refusing him service a few months ago. They spend an obscene/stupid amount of money at that Starbucks so I was secretly cheering it on - the cyclist alienating policy that is - but I finally broke down and talked some common sense. Not worth the aggravation.
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Old 08-12-19, 06:03 AM
  #86  
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One of Urban Life's Mysteries that Confounds Me

Does anyone know any fast food chain that encourages, or at least do not mind, bicyclists to satisfy their late-night cravings by ordering food to-go from them? This actually sucks. Why do you need to be in a car to order via drive-thru? Any logic on that policy? Or is there really a policy? Perhaps fast food order-taker just mostly miserable and power-tripping?
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Old 08-12-19, 06:25 AM
  #87  
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Originally Posted by Chetster213
This actually sucks. Why do you need to be in a car to order via drive-thru? Any logic on that policy? Or is there really a policy? Perhaps fast food order-taker just mostly miserable and power-tripping?
Food order-taker has no power to trip on; they're at the bottom, and just like the rest of us are being shat on by lawyers.
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Old 08-14-19, 10:38 AM
  #88  
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I did once. I got the confused look, but I got my order just fine. No, I did not use the intercom to order. I went straight to the window.
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Old 08-14-19, 11:01 AM
  #89  
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Originally Posted by Chetster213
Any logic on that policy? Or is there really a policy?
Some places see it as an issue of risk management.

For example:

https://www.wlky.com/article/officer...-thru/24844219

Imagine if a cyclist had been in front of that guy when he accidentally hit the gas.

Brief discussion of the issue here:

https://www.citylab.com/solutions/20...-lanes/388141/
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Old 08-14-19, 11:25 AM
  #90  
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It isn't clear from the article how the man became stuck and seriously injured. Ordinary car crash & crumpling?

That does bring up an issue of distracted driving with respect to money.

Nonetheless, avid cyclists are at the mercy of cars every day. So, when one stops at a stop sign or a light, one has to hope the car behind also stops.

Different businesses seem to approach this issue differently. Fast food and Pharmacies seem to be restricting access.

Banks and Coffee Kiosks seem to allow service to all. Drive-up ATMs?
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Old 08-14-19, 11:28 AM
  #91  
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Hmm, I've never thought about cycling through a fast-food drive-thru. They're usually packed with a long line of cars.

I just lock my bike to something and go inside places.

Now that I think about it, I think I remember coming across a news article, where, at night, a guy walked up to the fast food window (he couldn't go inside to order because the employees had already locked the doors at night, per management's safety protocols) and was denied service (apparently, for employees' safety).

Last edited by anon06; 08-14-19 at 11:37 AM.
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Old 08-14-19, 12:06 PM
  #92  
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Originally Posted by CliffordK
Nonetheless, avid cyclists are at the mercy of cars every day. So, when one stops at a stop sign or a light, one has to hope the car behind also stops.
That's the point. A business doesn't want to get sued when then car doesn't stop or accidentally accelerates in its drive thru lane. Some business owners see it as an appreciable risk. Others don't.

Has nothing to do with power trips or spite for cyclists as some are suggesting. Not everything is a conspiracy.
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Old 08-14-19, 12:13 PM
  #93  
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If motorcycles can, bicycles should also be able to.
If motorcycles can, then vespas and motor scooters should also.
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If electric bikes can, then so should I.
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Old 08-14-19, 12:40 PM
  #94  
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Originally Posted by indyfabz
That's the point. A business doesn't want to get sued when then car doesn't stop or accidentally accelerates in its drive thru lane. Some business owners see it as an appreciable risk. Others don't.

Has nothing to do with power trips or spite for cyclists as some are suggesting. Not everything is a conspiracy.
How many cups of coffee does Dutch Brothers sell to walk-up customers?

Of course, it may be something that they should make sure the car drivers get their morning coffee QUICKLY!!!! (other than side-effects of jitteriness).

It may be that if Dutch Brothers sells 1 million cups of coffee to walk-up/ride-up customers, it would cover any added liability. Plus, bad publicity can hurt a business more than just turning away a single customer. I.E. turn away a cyclist, and will that cyclist come back the next time they're driving? Spread good word to acquaintances, and do Facebook likes?

Liability suits alone are troublesome. But, any liability suit has a few principles. Go after the one with the deepest pockets. But, one also has to prove negligence.

One could conclude that a police department handing an officer a gun to commit murder with qualifies as negligence.

On the other hand, it might be a stretch to prove negligence at a drive-through.

Is the city negligent for every time a person is rear-ended at a stop sign? It usually falls on the driver. The rare exceptions would be poor road designs, such as stop signs just after the crest of a hill (usually fixed by installing blinking lights before the peak).

So, one would have to prove that one's favorite fast food restaurant made an unusually unsafe design.

The curves in the drive-through may play into that, but with 99.99% of US cars being left hand drive, not seeing a bicycle right in front of the driver... and respecting slow speeds in a drive-through... it is hard to imagine liability not being fully on the driver.

Sun? Shade? Rain Cover?

And, how often are Dutch Brothers Coffee Kiosks robbed? And, by the end of the day, they probably deal with a fair amount of cash.

Then again, as long as employees are safe, cleaning out the day's till is hardly more than an inconvenience (plus it is all caught on camera).

My guess is this whole thing deals more with movements through queues than "safety". It is believed that a single drive-through lane should be a fast moving queue independent from walking inside and standing in one to a half dozen lines waiting to have the order taken, then waiting again for the order to be fulfilled. Most fast food restaurants have only a single drive-through lane, but may augment speed by having an order taking squawk box, payment stop, and order pickup, potentially served by 3 different employees during busy times. And, sometimes also parking and delivery to the vehicle.

The assumption is that the needs of a cyclist is the same as a pedestrian, and different from a car driver (who often can't safely eat while driving).
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Old 08-14-19, 12:43 PM
  #95  
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wut
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Old 08-14-19, 08:36 PM
  #96  
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Originally Posted by indyfabz
Has nothing to do with power trips or spite for cyclists as some are suggesting. Not everything is a conspiracy.
It has to do with that phenomenon where an annoying noise is so constant you only notice it when it stops. Consideration of public amenity isn't really a thing, while pandering to powerful interest groups is totally a thing, hence these default assumptions people tend to have, which serve to reinforce hegemonies.
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Old 08-14-19, 08:43 PM
  #97  
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wut
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Old 08-14-19, 10:16 PM
  #98  
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Its the vibe, man
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Old 08-15-19, 03:59 AM
  #99  
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Originally Posted by Kimmo
It has to do with that phenomenon where an annoying noise is so constant you only notice it when it stops. Consideration of public amenity isn't really a thing, while pandering to powerful interest groups is totally a thing, hence these default assumptions people tend to have, which serve to reinforce hegemonies.
*yawn*
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Old 08-15-19, 10:41 PM
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Originally Posted by indyfabz
*yawn*
Same reaction as most of the other peasants standing by while neofeudalism looms. Won't be a yawn when civilisation collapses in a decade or so...

You're gonna miss toilet paper.
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