Limiting drive-thrus can make streets more dangerous for pedestrians and snarl traffic.
St. Paul officials are considering a proposed restriction on drive-thru facilities in some zoning districts, reports Kyle Stokes in Axios. “The proposal isn't a citywide ban — like Minneapolis enacted in 2019 — but in certain zoning districts it would only allow drive-thrus at banks or pharmacies,” Stokes explains.
The proposal aims to make streets in dense neighborhoods safer and more walkable. “The Starbucks at Snelling & Marshall, dubbed ‘Carbucks’ by some social media users, closed its drive-thru in 2022 after years of complaints about cars overflowing from the parking lot into streets and nearby bike lanes.”
The new rules would require a tripling of current drive-thru lane space for waiting cars and fully bans new drive-thrus in the city center. “Other large cities like Atlanta have enacted similar restrictions, often citing traffic research that more ‘conflict points,’ like a drive-thru lane crossing a sidewalk, make streets more dangerous for pedestrians.”
Read the full story: Years after viral "Carbucks" debacle, St. Paul considers new drive-thru limits
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