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The biggest challenge to this is weather. Do you really want to roll down your window and get soaked in a rainstorm to pick a #1 with a diet coke? Most drive-t

The biggest challenge to this is weather. Do you really want to roll down your window and get soaked in a rainstorm to pick a #1 with a diet coke? Most drive-thrus I've ever seen (Ohio, US) have zero cover and you are completely exposed to whatever mother nature wants to throw at you. Even the service window itself may have a tiny 24" awning that barely helps. In fact in my experience during rain it makes it worse as you get runoff right on top of the vehicle since they don't have rain gutters.

soco 2y ago
I would guess - and correct me if I'm wrong - that building a cover over that window was much cheaper than all this exercise they're trying. I mean low-tech solutions don't become invalid just because AI.
- Suzuran 2y ago
  Of course they do, the AI allows us to gouge the customers out of so much more. You must be new to this capitalism thing.
- raverbashing 2y ago
  Yes but the top priced MBA consultants at very expensive "big 4" companies would have never thought of that
  - ethbr1 2y ago
    Oh, they definitely thought of that. They were no doubt just told by their boss, and their boss's boss, to 'prove that McDonald's is using AI.'
jjallen 2y ago
So cover them. Not sure how this could be so hard
- imglorp 2y ago
  I bet they get tired of overheight vehicles smashing them. The few detracting from the many as usual?
  - JohnFen 2y ago
    I've seen lots of fast food places where there is covering. They avoid this problem by installing thick steel tubing in front of the covering so overheight vehicles hit that instead.
nsvd 2y ago
Interesting, almost all drive-throughs here have an awning.
hadlock 2y ago
That may be because it freezes there, and there's a hazard of ice falling on vehicles etc. In both Texas and California, generally the drive through order thing has a ~8x8' cover over it. It never freezes for more than a day or two in populated areas of TX and CA

soco 2y ago

I would guess - and correct me if I'm wrong - that building a cover over that window was much cheaper than all this exercise they're trying. I mean low-tech solutions don't become invalid just because AI.

Suzuran 2y ago
Of course they do, the AI allows us to gouge the customers out of so much more. You must be new to this capitalism thing.
raverbashing 2y ago
Yes but the top priced MBA consultants at very expensive "big 4" companies would have never thought of that
- ethbr1 2y ago
  Oh, they definitely thought of that. They were no doubt just told by their boss, and their boss's boss, to 'prove that McDonald's is using AI.'

jjallen 2y ago

So cover them. Not sure how this could be so hard

imglorp 2y ago
I bet they get tired of overheight vehicles smashing them. The few detracting from the many as usual?
- JohnFen 2y ago
  I've seen lots of fast food places where there is covering. They avoid this problem by installing thick steel tubing in front of the covering so overheight vehicles hit that instead.

nsvd 2y ago

Interesting, almost all drive-throughs here have an awning.

hadlock 2y ago

That may be because it freezes there, and there's a hazard of ice falling on vehicles etc. In both Texas and California, generally the drive through order thing has a ~8x8' cover over it. It never freezes for more than a day or two in populated areas of TX and CA