---
title: "Are Drive-Thrus Killing the Environment? Minneapolis Isn't Taking Any Chances"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/e0a857e2-0165-4826-998f-a60576c6ae52
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/are-drive-thrus-killing-the-environment-minneapolis-isnt-taking-any-chances-2710694
category: "QSR"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "QSR"
topics: ["Regulation & legal"]
published: 2019-08-09T22:17:01.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:09:16.702Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/5ce04f68c1c91f9bbcd326ac04d7b0468679.jpg
---

# Are Drive-Thrus Killing the Environment? Minneapolis Isn't Taking Any Chances

**TL;DR:** The Minneapolis City Council voted unanimously to prohibit new drive-through fast-food restaurants, citing climate benefits and pedestrian safety. The ban is part of the city's efforts to reduce gas emissions and promote sustainability.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2019-08-09. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/are-drive-thrus-killing-the-environment-minneapolis-isnt-taking-any-chances-2710694).*

## Story

This past week, the Minneapolis City Council voted unanimously to prohibit new drive-through fast-food restaurants, banks and drugstores , citing the climate benefits of taking cars off of the roads to cut back on gas emissions .

Lisa Bender, the City Council President, tweeted : “Responding to our constituents’ concerns about their impacts on neighbors, pedestrian safety and building design, Minneapolis will no longer allow new drive-throughs.”

Drive-thru windows have long been associated with the fast-food segment, with burger chain In-N-Out claiming to have set the trend in 1948. In fact, the popular California hotspot started as a drive-thru-only restaurant, until long lines and a crackdown on city government building permits forced the chain to expand. Ironically, the chain’s home town of Baldwin Park banned drive-thru windows in 2010 as part of Michelle Obama’s national campaign to stem obesity. The trend continued—with San Luis Obispo, California prohibiting the drive-thru window back in 1982, much to McDonald’s chagrin .

Not everyone is a fan of Minneapolis’ new ordinance. The first version of the ban failed in 2016 , including vocal opposition from an advisory committee on people with disabilities. One user tweeted in response to Bender, “ Instead of drive-thrus at food service establishments, far more parking will be needed, paving over far more green space.”

With the global climate crisis becoming more and more urgent , Minneapolis has decided to take a controversial step to do what they can, one window at a time.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- McDonald's (company)
- In-N-Out (company)
- San Luis Obispo (location)
- fast food regulation (topic)
- Minneapolis City Council (regulator)
- Baldwin Park (location)
- drive-thru ban (topic)
- climate benefits (topic)
- pedestrian safety (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/are-drive-thrus-killing-the-environment-minneapolis-isnt-taking-any-chances-2710694). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/e0a857e2-0165-4826-998f-a60576c6ae52).