Bicycle-Through: Cycling mom Twitters, gets burger chain to change policy

categories: Activism, Consumer, Social Entrepreneurship, Solutions, Transportation

Published August 21, 2009 @ 01:35PM PT

$Sarah Gilbert\'s custom stretch bicycle, with two of her three sons on board.$ They call it "drive-through" for a reason -- or so "family bicycling evangelist" Sarah Gilbert learned on August 12, when she was refused service at a fast-food restaurant for being on a bicycle in the drive-through lane.

But she didn't just get mad; she got online, and prompted the company to change its drive-through lane policy for the better.

As the self-selected moniker of "evangelist" might suggest, Sarah Gilbert doesn't simply not own a car; she's affirmatively chosen to not own a car. Gilbert instead transports her three sons, ages 2, 4 and 7, around Portland, Ore. on a custom-built stretch bicycle, which is adorned with the bumper sticker "One Less Minivan." And she'd been served just a few weeks earlier at the very same Burgerville restaurant that was now turning down her order for four cheeseburgers.

So when she got home, Gilbert took action: She posted an exasperated criticism of the restaurant on Twitter -- "burgerville on 26th/powell turned me on my bike away from drivethrough, and not nicely at all, tho i've biked thru before. #bikeunfriendly?" -- wrote the company a letter, and posted the letter on her blog.

One twist to the story is that Burgerville, a regional fast-food chain, wears its eco-conscious heart on its sleeve. The company buys all its power green; uses regional ingredients in season (oh, how I miss those Oregon-grown-blackberry shakes and Walla Walla onion rings since I moved back east); and recycles its cooking oil into biodiesel.

Within hours, Burgerville Twittered back to Gilbert: "Hi Sarah, We noticed your concerns and will be contacting you shortly via direct message. Thank you."

Two days later, Burgerville announced its plan to formally allow people on bicycles to order and pick up food in each and every one of the chain's 39 drive-through lanes.

On its own, this is a small-impact change on the larger canvas of sustainability (making it easier and more practical to live without a car) -- until you multiply your Sarah Gilberts by hundreds or thousands of American cities, and the thousands of businesses they can have an impact on.

"It is not even that I believe I, as a cyclist or mama of three or cute redhead or denizen of Southeast Portland, have an entitlement to fast food ordered through a speaker, paid for and delivered through a window," writes Gilbert. "But it is a symbol: of bike-friendliness. Of responsiveness. Of the power of words. Of rationality. Of a local company whose chief cultural officer is obviously not just a cute title.

"I don't really enjoy the world the way it is. I want the windows opened, the barriers taken down, people to get around more slowly and to talk more. I want it to be easier to smile at someone else. I want it to be harder not to know your neighbor. I want it to be safer, lovelier, more ordinary to ride your bike."

(Hat tip to JM)

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Image via Sarah Gilbert's blog entry of March 10, 2009

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Comments (6)

And, I should add, this is also a great example of how companies can make great use of Twitter to connect with their customers, get valuable critiques, and improve their operations.

Posted by Emily Gertz on 08/21/2009 @ 01:45PM PT
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I tried to bicycle through a drive-up window at Phoenix branch of the US Postal Service a few years back.They would not serve me saying only "The drive up window is for cars not bikes." They told me I had to park the bike and come inside. Needless to say I was outraged, but unable to convince the Postal (monopoly) worker otherwise. Perhaps there should be a movement to get all drive-throughs bike friendly.

Posted by Paul Prosser on 08/21/2009 @ 02:12PM PT
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I had the same issue walking through once at a bank. The lobby was closed so I could not go in. They finally allowed it, but it threw their world into a tizzy!

Posted by Charlie Reed on 08/21/2009 @ 04:35PM PT
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Yeah, using your eco-friendly bike to buy a nice methane emitting fast food chain burger is real progress...

Posted by Michael A. Weber on 08/25/2009 @ 09:21AM PT
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I second Michael's comment. The CO2 savings from not having a minivan are totally blown away simply by choosing to eat fast food! Not to mention the detrimental health benefits to the children. I can see if this was a place like Local Burger, but it doesn't sound like it.

Plus the whole concept of drive-thru misses the whole point of being more eco-conscious. One big point of being green is slowing down, and that means to stop and actually eat and enjoy your food.

The reason drive-thrus were created were because of the auto. There's not really a safe way to eat while on a bike, so what is going through the drive thru really accomplishing anyway? They might as well have just parked it and gone inside since the utility of the drive thru doesn't really apply for bicycles.

Posted by Erik Harper on 08/26/2009 @ 06:25AM PT
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I just realized it is like Local Burger, so i retract the comment made previously. It is a good thing for stores like this to source locally, but I think my points made before still stand.

Posted by Erik Harper on 08/26/2009 @ 06:28AM PT
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