Chick-fil-A isn't lining up in the streets, that's your neighbors who are in line to pay sales taxes that support our city, county, and state while getting a lunch that they like. The only government solution that I would support is the continued focus on making our city more walkable and bikeable.
Eminent domain and penalties? No way. Don’t punish them for being successful and being best at what they do.
1) incentivize CFA to open more stores on bigger lots. They’re creating jobs, bringing in business, and run a great operation. Exactly the kind of partner you hope for.
2) what is their fast-food competition doing to gain back some share and spread the customers around? Not CFA’s fault that their competitors can’t keep up.
The premise of this article is ridiculous. The city, and the traffic cops, should be doing everything they can to support will run private businesses. If people don’t want private businesses to create traffic, then I guess we better shut down Bank of America Stadium, the marathon, much of Ballantyne…. Etc. I don’t hear anybody calling for that.
Who pays for all those cops on the street directing traffic before and after panther games?
Chick-fil-A picks the smallest possible locations to place their franchises. This in itself causes major issues. They have to know it before it's even built. The size of the lot should be considered before building permits are issued!
Perhaps the question isn't in rearranging the ground...could they go up with their lanes? Build double decker kitchens and a double/triple laned ramps up, around and back down.
Easy answer: Option A: get rid of the drive-through. Handicapped customers could order by phone or online and get food brought to their cars from special parking places (like everyone else has for curbside pickup). It wouldn't hurt able-bodied people to walk 50 feet into the restaurant and back -- with a mask if they are concerned about any airborne disease. Option B: Ask the police to enforce the laws we have for obstrcuting traffic due to stopping in a thoroughfare. Directing cars to "move on" or handing our a few traffic tickets (after a public warning) might changfe customer behavior which would force the business to change its own.
I'm not sure what it would take, but if the city or the police had the power to close a drive thru temporarily when it obstructs traffic I think that would give an incentive for the drive thru to solve the problem.
Thanks! You satisfied most of my (embarrassingly deep) curiosity about Chick-fil-A. What I'm missing is the view from Atlanta -- how does headquarters decide when to allow another Golconda in this clearly under-Chicked market? (Maybe they could repurpose some of those Subways being shuttered by the thousands?)
Some fast-food chains have “express” locations with limited menus at airports and other grab-and-go sites. Maybe Chick-fil-A could redesign some of its locations to speed the process… or offer limited menus at super-crowded times (and posting those times so customers aren’t taken off-guard).
I live near the Cotswold location and have been nearly hit more times than I can count by cars making the left turn out of the Chick-fil-A. There's a no left turn sign, and with all the cars backed up on Randolph, those exiting can't see who's coming. If they enforced the no left turn it would make it a little safer. I'm also for not allowing people to turn left into the store from Randolph. Just go around and approach from the south. I personally refuse to go to that restaurant due to the stress they've caused me with near accidents with their patrons.
Why doesn’t the Cotswold Chick-fil-A buy the adjacent Bojangles? For the last number of months it looks like they have put them out of business anyway. I don’t see any activity on the Bojangles renovation.
Bojangles was planning to revamp that location and get rid of the indoor dining, but now they say they are just going to remodel. I have seen no evidence that has started. Also, a lot of times you don't want to sell to a competitor.
The situation may have changed as cars emit less pollution than they did, but I recall studies from a decade or more ago that found restarting a car, say, after you picked up your meal, polluted more than having it idle. That may no longer be the case, of course.
Chick-fil-A isn't lining up in the streets, that's your neighbors who are in line to pay sales taxes that support our city, county, and state while getting a lunch that they like. The only government solution that I would support is the continued focus on making our city more walkable and bikeable.
Eminent domain and penalties? No way. Don’t punish them for being successful and being best at what they do.
1) incentivize CFA to open more stores on bigger lots. They’re creating jobs, bringing in business, and run a great operation. Exactly the kind of partner you hope for.
2) what is their fast-food competition doing to gain back some share and spread the customers around? Not CFA’s fault that their competitors can’t keep up.
The premise of this article is ridiculous. The city, and the traffic cops, should be doing everything they can to support will run private businesses. If people don’t want private businesses to create traffic, then I guess we better shut down Bank of America Stadium, the marathon, much of Ballantyne…. Etc. I don’t hear anybody calling for that.
Who pays for all those cops on the street directing traffic before and after panther games?
Chick-fil-A picks the smallest possible locations to place their franchises. This in itself causes major issues. They have to know it before it's even built. The size of the lot should be considered before building permits are issued!
Perhaps the question isn't in rearranging the ground...could they go up with their lanes? Build double decker kitchens and a double/triple laned ramps up, around and back down.
Easy answer: Option A: get rid of the drive-through. Handicapped customers could order by phone or online and get food brought to their cars from special parking places (like everyone else has for curbside pickup). It wouldn't hurt able-bodied people to walk 50 feet into the restaurant and back -- with a mask if they are concerned about any airborne disease. Option B: Ask the police to enforce the laws we have for obstrcuting traffic due to stopping in a thoroughfare. Directing cars to "move on" or handing our a few traffic tickets (after a public warning) might changfe customer behavior which would force the business to change its own.
I'm not sure what it would take, but if the city or the police had the power to close a drive thru temporarily when it obstructs traffic I think that would give an incentive for the drive thru to solve the problem.
This is not a Charlotte issue. Travel around and you will see. Any place where you can find a Chick-Fil-A, you will find a traffic clusterf$$K
Thanks! You satisfied most of my (embarrassingly deep) curiosity about Chick-fil-A. What I'm missing is the view from Atlanta -- how does headquarters decide when to allow another Golconda in this clearly under-Chicked market? (Maybe they could repurpose some of those Subways being shuttered by the thousands?)
perhaps other fast food drive-thru chains should improve their food and service... quality competition would spread the cars around... just saying
Some fast-food chains have “express” locations with limited menus at airports and other grab-and-go sites. Maybe Chick-fil-A could redesign some of its locations to speed the process… or offer limited menus at super-crowded times (and posting those times so customers aren’t taken off-guard).
We included some of these comments, and others from social media and emails, in a "reader mailbag" with possible solutions to the Chick-fil-A traffic mess. https://charlotteledger.substack.com/p/readers-propose-solutions-to-chick?s=w
I live near the Cotswold location and have been nearly hit more times than I can count by cars making the left turn out of the Chick-fil-A. There's a no left turn sign, and with all the cars backed up on Randolph, those exiting can't see who's coming. If they enforced the no left turn it would make it a little safer. I'm also for not allowing people to turn left into the store from Randolph. Just go around and approach from the south. I personally refuse to go to that restaurant due to the stress they've caused me with near accidents with their patrons.
Why doesn’t the Cotswold Chick-fil-A buy the adjacent Bojangles? For the last number of months it looks like they have put them out of business anyway. I don’t see any activity on the Bojangles renovation.
Bojangles was planning to revamp that location and get rid of the indoor dining, but now they say they are just going to remodel. I have seen no evidence that has started. Also, a lot of times you don't want to sell to a competitor.
We have found that parking and going in is ALWAYS faster than waiting in the drive-through.
And no one talks about the added pollution from cars sitting in all these drive-thru's - banks, schools, etc.
Good point. Some communities, even in NC, have banned new drive-thrus. https://www.wral.com/new-drive-through-windows-banned-in-carrboro/13762313/
The situation may have changed as cars emit less pollution than they did, but I recall studies from a decade or more ago that found restarting a car, say, after you picked up your meal, polluted more than having it idle. That may no longer be the case, of course.