Drive-Through Day

Drive-through. Circe Denyer / www.publicdomainpictures.net / CC0 1.0

The 24th of July is Drive-Through Day.

It celebrates the 20th century invention of drive-through services, the most popular of which is drive-through dining.

Drive-through service marries convenience, fast service and fast-food together in one affordable package. And you get to conserve calories by staying in the car, while ordering more calories to consume. What’s not to like?

Of course nothing strictly says it has to be drive-through food day. You could do drive-through banking, pick up a drive-through prescription or your drive-through cleaning, enjoy drive-through Christmas lights or drive-through zoos, or get a drive-through flu shot. People are thinking of new drive-through services all the time: what’s next, drive-through hair cuts?

How many times have you driven away with your food order, only to find that it was messed up? And what do you tend to do? Suffer in silence and eat it, or go back and let them know?

Drive-throughs certainly can be a benefit to “the elderly, people with disabilities and mobility issues, parents with children in car seats, the time challenged…” ^[1]Goyette, David. Peterborough council dodges a drive-through debate. Peterborough, Ontario: The Peterborough Examiner. 15 February 2018. Accessed June 2021 at https://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/opinion-story/8358511-peterborough-council-dodges-a-drive-through-debate/

Critics, though, say they generate a lot of pollution from idling cars.

Before you eat drive-through food in your car, you may wish to use a wet wipe to clean your hands first if you can. A maker of wet wipes gives these tips:

“Eating in a car presents a few challenges from the little crumbs, fries, and other food bits that drop and hide under the seat to a bigger concern – eating with all of the germs that are lurking on the steering wheel, sound system controls, cup holders, armrests, door handles and more! One would not think of eating in a bathroom seated on the throne! What many do not realize is your car can contain more germs and pathogens than a public washroom. The problem? People get confused with clean and disinfected. So what can you do? Wipe your key touch points in your car with a disinfectant wipe… As you can’t wash your hands in your car before you eat use a good hand safe wipe to clean thoroughly – don’t forget in between your fingers! Throw out the garbage immediately to keep things from growing in the back seat. Use a fresh wipe again when you finish your meal before to touch any controls in your car.” ^[2]National Drive Through Day. Kitchener, Ontario: Roxton Industries. 24 July 2019. Accessed June 2021 at https://roxtonindustries.ca/national-drive-through-day-july-24/

And speaking of messy, what about the spelling of drive-through these days? There’s a growing tendency to spell it drive-thru, but as someone said, that raises the logical problem of do you drive thru a drive-thru, or drive through a drive-thru, and if not one then why the other? We’ll leave that question for those who like to debate while they are eating in their cars!

#DriveThroughDay  #DriveThruDay #NationalDriveThruDay

See also: Fast Food Day

Drive-through banking. Robert Couse-Baker / pxhere / 2017 / CC0 1.0

Activities for Today

• Check apps of major chains for deals today;
• Get some drive-through food today, whether breakfast, lunch, dinner, or a snack;
• Try another non-food drive-through service;
• Get photos of your drive-through experience and share them from your car to social media, using the hashtags for today;
• Get yourself some hand sanitizer or wet-wipe disinfectants to keep in the car, so you can always practise safe drive-through;
• Above all, be a good earthling today by making sure your litter from drive-through eating finds its way securely into a proper trash bin!

History

In 2003, the Tampa Tribune newspaper in Florida said that the day fell on the 28th of July:

“Did you know? National Drive Through Day is today. Enjoy the summer weather and head to a drive-through restaurant near you.” — Daily Calendar. Tampa, Florida. The Tampa Tribune. Monday, 28th July 2003. Page 2, col. 1.

The first print mention CooksInfo can find of a “Drive-Through Day” being on the 24th of July is in the Charlotte Observer, on Monday, 23rd July, when a columnist says the next day, Tuesday (the 24th), is the big day:

“Tuesday. Fries with that? It’s National Drive-Through Day.” — Schwab, Helen. Day by day. Charlotte, South Carolina: The Charlotte Observer. Monday, 23 July 2007. Page D1, col. 1.

Sources

Ann, Leslie. It’s Time To Head To Your Favorite Drive Through. Oneonta, New York: WZOZ-FM Radio. 24 July 2012. Accessed June 2021 at http://wzozfm.com/its-time-to-head-to-your-favorite-drive-through/

Jordan, Monique. Today is also National Drive Through Day. Northport, Alabama: WTUG-FM. 24 July 2017. Accessed June 2021 at http://wtug.com/today-is-also-national-drive-through-day/

Tyko, Kelly. National Drive-Thru Day is Tuesday but here’s how to get deals and freebies year-round. USA Today. 24 July 2018. Accessed June 2021 at https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/nation-now/2018/07/24/national-drive-thru-day-score-freebies-and-deals-beyond-july-24/817999002/

Drive-through. Michael Steeber / www.publicdomainpictures.net / 2015 / CC BY-SA 2.0