Used as a means to avoid damage to vehicles from drive through restaurant gutters and to protect the buildings and property, the importance of rumble bars in these venues cannot be overstated.
When it comes to staying safe on the road, most of us would agree that prevention is often the better route when compared to repairs. While rumble strips are often used on public roads and highways to guide drivers, the smaller landscape of drive thru outlets presents a different set of challenges.
In the right set of circumstances, rumble bars are an incredibly cost effective way to reduce accidents and damage linked to drivers not paying attention to their surroundings. Rumble strips are often too big to use in drive thru settings, which is when the importance of using rumble bars can be a real game changer.
How KFC Uses Rumble Bars For Their Drive Thrus
A drive through outlet, otherwise known simply as a drive thru, is a type of take-out service provided by a business that allows customers to purchase products without leaving their cars. Popular for alcohol and food based services, the format was pioneered in the United States in the 1930s by Jordan Martin.
Once upon a time, drive-thrus were solely the domain of chains like KFC and McDonalds. Now, brands such as Hungry Jacks, Coffee Club, Guzman Y Gomez, Zarraffa’s Coffee, Starbucks, Zambrero, Taco Bell, Oporto and various other operators have all embraced the consumer’s need for speed and convenience.
As any business owner knows, the customer experience is still paramount, and technology and innovation are playing a crucial role in making the process as fast and efficient as possible, particularly when it comes to the ordering process. However, there is still one area of the drive-through experience that irks and frustrates customers more than any other and that is the car damage so frequently suffered in the drive thru lane, particularly gutter rash.
Any enterprise that must incorporate the use of vehicles into its workplace health and safety plans must always be prepared to go the extra mile, such as what KFC has done with rumble bars in its outlets across the country .
As one of the first operators in Australia to embrace rumble bars as lane dividers, curb protectors and curb spacers in their drive thrus, KFC are doing their part to safeguard cars against any potential wheel damage stemming from gutter rash. While many others opt for painted lines, the fried chicken pioneers have instead opted to use rumble bars as a more obvious warning to customers that they are edging too close to the drive thru gutters.
However, it’s worth noting that KFC’s investment in rumble bars isn’t just about a customer’s experience – it’s also about profitability. According to restaurant experts, drive-thru design heavily influences what consumers purchase at a drive-thru – or if they purchase anything at all. Make no mistake, the customer journey down the drive-thru lane is an important one, and a well designed system will subtly influence their feedback and overall consumer spending.
When mapping out what makes for a good drive thru, it’s important to remember that not all drivers are confident with navigating small or tight spaces. The addition of rumble bars not only helped to protect the vehicles that use the drive thru in question, but is also a visual aid that can help quell any anxiety that a driver may feel about using such services, and to ultimately ensure they feel comfortable enough to come back.
Unfortunately, the rising cost of land in Australia now means that building drive through restaurants is often synonymous with confinement and working with extremely tight spaces. As such, the addition of rumble bars can be a revolutionary way to transform a customer’s experience – but where do you find them?
Partnering With The Road Safety Professionals
At Speed Humps Australia, we’ve spent more than 15 years focusing on one thing: to provide one style of product, and to do it exceptionally well. We have worked tirelessly to develop specifications that do not fade or deteriorate, are easy to install, and are made from high-quality, recycled rubber for minimal environmental impact.
With just a handful of our clients around the nation including KFC, McDonalds, Taco Bell, Westfield, Shell and numerous Local Governments, our rumble bars, speed humps and wheel stops have been purposefully designed and truly go the distance.
As our design and production is all handled in house and supplied Australia wide, get in touch with us today to request a quote or discuss how we can help with providing a tailored solution to your unique project requirements.
