More Cities Ponder the End of Drive-Thrus

Not many U.S. cities have taken the radical step up prohibiting the development of drive-thru operations like fast food restaurants and coffee shops. Minneapolis ended drive-thru development in 2019, but the list of cities prioritizing traffic safety and air quality over driver convenience is relatively small.

Now city planners in Golden, Colorado are considering an ordinance that would limit, or even ban, the development of drive-thrus in the city.

John Aguilar reports in a paywalled article for the Denver Post that Golden has launched what is expected to be a months-long process to explore the potential to limit, or entirely prohibit, drive-thrus in the city.

“Councilman Rob Reed, who with Brown brought the idea forward for consideration, said the detractions of drive-thrus are evident,” reports Aguilar. “They require huge amounts of asphalt, which exacerbates the urban heat island effect common to many paved-over areas. More notably, there’s the impact on air quality, with motorists spewing emissions as they inch forward for that crispy chicken sandwich, bank withdrawal or venti latte.”

Aguilar reports that the changes to drive-thru rules will be considered as part of the city’s ongoing process to revise its zoning code. “Reed said he doesn’t expect Golden to make any decisions on the matter until next spring, at the earliest,” writes Aguilar.

As for the “No-Drive-Thrus Club,” Aguilar also notes that, in addition to Minneapolis, Long Beach in California issued a temporary ban on drive-thrus in 2019 and the Salt lake City Council is expected to vote on its own drive-thru ban for a part of the city in just a few weeks.