Going Through a Drive Thru 1000 Times Updated

Going Through a Drive Thru 1000 Times

47 Stunning Drive-Thru Industry Statistics for 2020

Since their inception in the 1960s, the bulldoze-thru has been a growing channel of fast food industry sales. But in 2020 every bit the global pandemic has striking, the drive-thru became a mission disquisitional sales channel for preserving shop acquirement.

Even earlier the COVID pandemic hit, between 60% – 70% of some sure quick serve restaurant'due south sales came from drive thru lanes. In the current environment Wendy'southward reported generating 90% of all business from bulldoze thru. Those are staggering numbers fifty-fifty given the electric current environment.

But it'southward not merely traditional fast food that have taken annotation of this aqueduct. The java industry, particularly Starbucksaccelerated their strategy add together more than drive-thru's and less mall locations.

Based on the data, you lot can expect many more than restaurants and coffee shops to add drive-thru options over the next decade. Let's examine some of the manufacture statistics and data-backed predictions for this sales aqueduct organized by category.

Drive-Thru Fast Facts

Coffee chains like Starbucks are adding more drive-thru service locations over the next 18 months.

Drive thru sales represent seventy% of fast food sales which generates billions of dollars for the industry each month. ( The New York Times)

According to the NPD Grouping, a leading market enquiry company, 57% of hamburger fast food customers apply the drive-thru lane, twoscore% with Mexican QSRs, and 38% of chicken fast nutrient customers went straight to drive through lanes.

Americans visit drive thru lanes about 6 billion times each yr co-ordinate to some statistics. ( AItrends.com)

Another data from the NPD group suggest that fast food drive-thru's generated a revenue of $eight.3 billion only this final March, an increase of $3oo one thousand thousand compared to the aforementioned period in 2019. (The New York Times)

In a survey made in 2015 on customers favorite drive-thru restaurants yielded McDonald'due south at the top, followed past Burger Male monarch and Wendy's.

Back in 2009, Wendy'due south was the fastest serving drive thru with an 134 second average service time, while Chick-fil-A got a high grade for accuracy of orders served with a whopping 96%.

Drive thru and Climate Change

According to a study made by the U.S. Government, having your engine idle longer than 10 seconds consumes more fuel and generates more emissions than restarting your engine. The regime suggests that an idle engine in a drive-thru is both bad for your wallet and the planet. ( Globe Economic Forum)
The U.Southward. Department of Energy projected that getting rid of idling engines would exist alike to eradicating close to v one thousand thousand cars off the roads. (Globe Economical Forum)
Towns in New Jersey, California, and Missouri have laws banning the creation of new drive thru in fast nutrient restaurants with Minneapolis recently joining the group of states. (World Economic Forum)

Drive-Through Java Statistics

Recognizing higher profits, Starbucks appear terminal twelvemonth that they would include a drive-thru on 60% of new coffee shops to be congenital (pre-pandemic figures). ( Nextep Systems)
In the drive-thru industry, Starbucks still lags behind major competitors such as McDonald'south and Dunkin'. ( Bloomberg)
An espresso bulldoze-thru tin sell an boilerplate of 250 cups of coffee drinks and espresso in whatsoever given day. (Nextep Systems)
An club of tea, coffee, and a peanut butter cookie took effectually half dozen minutes on a typical Th in Chicago. During that time, six cars lined up showing customers eagerness to wait despite the long wait. (Bloomberg)
Dunkin' introduced the concept of a drive-thru mobile order window in 2018, exclusively for those who ordered through their mobile app. Customers who guild using this app goes directly to the "Mobile Order Pick Up" lane to avert jamming upwards with the ones lining up to order real-time. (Nextep Systems)
Co-ordinate to restaurant consultant, Tom Melt of Male monarch-Casey, 70% of customers go for drive-thru in Starbucks with car service while only a modest per centum stayed inside. (Bloomberg)

Speed of Service Information

As more than customers enter the bulldoze-thru lane, the speed of service is impacted.

Last twelvemonth, customers waited an average of 255 seconds in a bulldoze-thru lane, 20 seconds more compared to 2018. (Forbes)

McDonald'due south came last in a SeeLevel HX report made concluding 2018, with 273.29 seconds. ( QSRMagazine.com)

In a study made last twelvemonth, Dunkin' came in as the fastest serving fast nutrient bulldoze thru with 217 seconds, while Chick-fil-A came in last with 323 seconds or almost 5 minutes and 20 seconds from speaker box to window. (Today)

Despite setting the benchmark in 2011, Wendy's tape of 116 seconds serving time in 2003 hasn't been beat yet. Wendy's in 2011 posted an industry-all-time average time of simply 145 seconds, followed by Taco Bell with 146. The slowest boilerplate time was held by McDonald's with 184 seconds that same twelvemonth.

In 2018, the average serving time for the top ten fast food chains was at 234.08 seconds. (QSRMagazine)

In a QSR survey done in 2013, the former fastest serving fast nutrient chain (Wendy's) clocked in at 133 seconds. X years prior, Wendy's went for a record-setting time of 116 seconds of serving time. (Today)

Final yr, Wendy's and Burger King were 2nd and 3rd in the ranking, each posting a serving fourth dimension of 210 and 213 seconds respectively. ( Statista)

The acceptable time limit with customers is between iii to 4 minutes. Anything beyond that is unsatisfactory co-ordinate to experts.

A SeeLevel HX study fabricated between June 1 to July 30 in 2018 of 10 fast nutrient chain's speed of service, Burger King came out on summit with 193.31 seconds or about 3 minutes and 22 seconds. (QSRMagazine)

Deterioration in the speed of service times has caused fast nutrient stats to decline in recent years. Despite maintaining its range of 2 to 3 minutes serving fourth dimension, the fast nutrient manufacture should not disregard this to sustain consumer satisfaction.

Last yr, 39% more than customers used drive-thru lanes compared to 2018 co-ordinate to a study by the National Restaurant Association. (Forbes)

A QSR Magazine study revealed that Chick-fil-A has the longest drive through line. Well-nigh 35% of the fourth dimension, an average of 6 or more than vehicles lined up in their bulldoze-thru lanes, a number greater than whatever of their competitors. (Statista)

Back in 2013, QSR Mag reported that 65% of McDonald's sales in the U.South. came from bulldoze-thru customers.

In 2018, Dunkin' introduced its dual-lane drive through organization. Chipotle unveiled the "Chipotlanes" in 2019, its own version of the said bulldoze through. (CNBC)

Circuitous items, every bit well every bit college volume orders, were seen as factors affecting slower serving time in bulldoze throughs beyond the fast food industry, according to a survey. (Today)

McDonald'southward had the highest number of locations with order-confirmation boards, while Chick-fil-A had the best order accurateness rate according to a 2019 study made past industry publisher, QSR. ( Statista)

lx% of Chick-fil-A's drive throughs take employees taking orders outside the queue. ( Forbes)

Depending on how you lot tally them, but at that place is an estimated 200,000 bulldoze-thru operations across the The states. (AItrends)

Convenience, menu diversity, and price are how customers rate their favorite drive-thru restaurants according to a survey made in 2015. (AYTM)

34% of customers swallow on-site at quick-service Mexican restaurants with drive-thru, while 26% exercise takeouts. It'due south a unlike story with chicken fast nutrient chains with 25% dining in while 36% order to-go.

Weathering the Pandemic

COVID-19 has closed dine-in service.

Starbucks, Taco Bong, and Chick-fil-A are but some of the fast food chains pushing for their patrons to get their food via takeout. The iii companies are making full employ of drive through lanes to disburse their food while maintaining social distancing among customers. ( CNBC)

Curbside pick upwardly in fast food chains is gaining popularity as it offers the all-time option to distribute their food. The food is fresher and hotter, convenient, and it eliminates treatment by a commitment person. Challenge food from curbside pick up is considered a lifeline among struggling fast nutrient chains during the current pandemic. ( QSR Web)

Since 60% to lxx% of most fast food sales come up from drive through counters, satisfying consumer experience is the central to maintain this figure specially during the pandemic co-ordinate to some experts. (CNBC)

Being a pioneer in the fast food industry, McDonald'due south is seen as the i who could weather through this pandemic amidst all of its rivals. McDonald's has invested largely on its drive throughs by putting up digital card boards that entice customers to guild bigger, more than premium items. (The New York Times)

Our world is heading towards the "new normal", a club with less to no-touch/contact, triggering certain industries to innovate with ways to deliver their product. Some fast food bondage are now turning to curbside pick up to limit customer-staff contact. It also provides a better control procedure too equally maintaining food quality from kitchen to consumer. Curbside pick up is seen every bit a more condom and sanitary way of handling food than 3rd political party delivery services. (QSR Spider web)

The current health emergency will make every restaurant consider adding drive thru service. This includes separate take-out/curbside pick up lanes and a new kitchen dedicated for off-premises dining. This motion is expected to be the new standard moving forward. (QSR Web)

The Drive-Thru Renaissance

Vintage drive-thru restaurant from the 1960s.

Chipotle is planning to add "Chipotlanes" in threescore locations by the stop of 2019, this includes putting up bulldoze through lanes in more than half of the new locations in 2020 (pre-pandemic figures). ( Business Insider)

McDonald's bought a company last year for $300 million to heighten its carte boards.

McDonald's acquisition of tech startup companies along with on-the-side retooling shows a promising sign for the drive-thru renaissance. (Business concern Insider)

San Diego based Jack in the Box chose to streamline their plans of remodeling their old chains by concentrating on drive thru. These upgrades include adding more canopies, LED lighting, and improved digital carte boards. (Eatery Business organisation)

Chipotle isn't alone in looking at a more high-tech drive thru. Dunkin' and Starbucks shops are already in the testing stage of drive thru pick upwardly lanes utilizing mobile orders. (Business Insider)

Chipotlanes showroom the fusion of efficiency with tailor-fabricated applied science. Using their app or ordering through their website, customers can effortlessly pick upwardly their nutrient from these windows quickly. Chipotle shows the style for other fast food chains to follow by adapting to available technology. (Restaurant Business organisation)

Industry Predictions

What's side by side for the drive-thru and have out industry?

Since a large portion of fast food sales comes from this sales aqueduct, fast-nutrient chains are expected to weather through the current global health crisis better than restaurants that relied on dine-in sales. The creation of curbside pickup lanes is one of the innovation implemented to help speed up this process.

These curbside pickup lanes or parking spots let customers to wait for their nutrient to be prepared while keeping the catamenia of the line moving backside them. After the meal is complete, an employee will hand deliver the food through the car door window.

The drive thru is viewed as a lifeline for nearly fast nutrient bondage which are but some of the industries expected to take a large hit with this current global pandemic.

Despite the grim outlook, the food industry is adapting to the "new normal" by introducing innovative ways to distribute their food to their customers. With McDonald's and Chipotle leading the manner, other fast nutrient chains are sure to follow their lead in an effort to survive the electric current crisis.

Unfortunately according to studies, drive through lanes remain piled upward with an average waiting time of 255 seconds or effectually 4.25 minutes from the speaker box to the window. This can be attributed to complex menus to unexpected book orders among other factors that delay the serving of the then-called "fast food".

Equally drive-thru traffic increases we predict scaled down or simplified menus will be put in place to improve through-put. As more drive-thru windows are added, more pickup parking will also be dedicated to serving these guests.

This trend is unfortunately another striking to the already struggling shopping mall industry. Restaurants and coffee shops will exist moving abroad from these locations because many don't offer drive-thru options.

Patrick Limdico is a Make Journalist at FoodTruckEmpire.com. Patrick conducts in-depth research backside many of the articles and authors a lot of posts you read on FTE. Off the desk, Pat watches basketball and racing, a tech addict, an avid follower of American T.5. series, and of course, a nutrient fanatic.