Fast-food drive-throughs in developing countries

A modern convenience perpetuating unsustainable transport decisions?

Abstract

Fast-food drive-throughs are a common feature in our fast-paced lives where convenience and service access are highly prized. This convenience comes at a high environmental price: long queues of idling vehicles guzzle fuel and generate emissions linked to global warming and health concerns. Drive throughs also generate significant income for franchisees and reduce parking requirements at fast-food outlets. Fast-food and drive-throughs are becoming more prevalent in the developing world at a time when these countries are facing rapidly increasing traffic congestion, driven by a desire for private transport use. This study considers aspects of sustainability of drive-throughs according to the mobility paradigm in the developing world, where vehicle centric urban form and rapid development are contributing to a mobility crisis. The drive-through is a prime example of capitalist vehicle-centric urban form. This paper is intended as a starting point for discussion on drive-through appropriateness in developing countries. Only two aspects of drive-through operations are considered in this initial investigation: the cost of using a drive through (fuel cost and environmental cost, approximated by the emissions load), and the space saving benefit realized by eliminating parking. This research found that drive-throughs save substantial land area by reducing parking and stimulate higher profits, making it unlikely that drive-throughs will be phased out, even with the significant environmental impact of drive throughs quantified in this paper. Recommendations for improved operations of drive-throughs are therefore suggested to mitigate long idling times in drive-through queues, and a call for more sustainable land-use planning is proposed.