Santa Barbara Works to Reduce Chick-fil-a Traffic on Upper State

SB City - put up or shut up. It's your job. No more surveys or other bs. You're paid well by us to handle this sh-t, get it done.

There's an interesting story how the previous eatery there obtained the drive through permit - it wasn't through clean channels.

I followed a cop through this area once. I thought he was there to move people along, but he just passed them by and continued down State. I wonder if all businesses on State can block traffic with their business model? Or is it only the ones like chik fil a?

CFA needs to abide by current regulations regarding traffic leading to their business. That was part of the original drive through permit. Burger King never had an issue with traffic. Seems that the city allowed the wrong business to set up shop there. Traffic mitigation should be a consideration of all business permits before issuance.

Starbucks at Turnpike is the same story. Why not park and walk in rather than sit for much longer and pollute the air while you block traffic?

Drove around more than a half dozen cars backed up onto State St @ 9:30 this morning. NO employee monitoring traffic or taking orders. All of the cars were using only one lane, none of them bothering to pull into the 2nd lane. So much for ChickF* doing their part to help with their own problem :-( .... It's the weekend so you can't call the city to complain so why should ChikF* spend the extra $$ to be a good neighbor ? The police should be ticketing them and after the 3rd offense the city should pull their conditional use permit. That might get their attention !

Nobody should be eating at that homophobic right wing restaurant anyway! GROSS.

This problem is easily solved. Cite everyone violating the law. That will change behavior very quickly. If it hurts Chick fil-A's business, then they will have to come up with a solution. The free market can work wonders here.

Just make State Street a one lane street. Like most of State Street is already.

Or same idea works on Modoc.... west of Las Positas.

Should have given Chick Fil-A the old National Guard Armory site. A busy corner.

The City could also allow CFA to operate some Roach Coaches - and let them go around to
the customers. Meals on Wheels.

Or use the old Sears upper level? Freeway ramps are nearby.

And ask Chick Fil -A to build a 2nd location nearby - split up the volume. or find out where
the customers now live. Do research. Write down license plate numbers and look them up on DMV data base.

Maybe build one on the north side of MACY's. Lots of vacant parking space is there. And would bring business to La Cumbre Mall.

moe

If and when the new CFA locations (possibly lower Milpas and Storke/Hollister) become operational the traffic congestion will be reduced substantially, but not completely. Wish there was a CFA on the Mesa...possibly they could take over the current McDonald's location or even Taco Bell across the street.

A motorcycle cop would solve this problem quickly and it would feed the tax vortex in SB nicely!

My understanding is that the city’s hands were tied because the drive-thru had been approved on the property for the previous business (can’t remember what that was) and couldn’t be rescinded just because a more popular business took over the property. People complain about the planning dept. not being business-friendly. Their friendliness to the prior business (ultimately to the property owner) resulted in this. I’ve gotten stuck there after stupidly choosing to get my car washed around lunchtime. Hard to get out into the left lane to get around the queue. No good solution that I can see. If some action is taken that hurts their business, CFA would be likely to take legal action in response. I don’t like their politics, but I could understand being pretty angry if new restrictions caused a reduction in business.

This business really needed a setup like In-and-Out on Turnpike... where cars can line up in queue and not block traffic. The property is way too small for the demand they generate. Poor planning.

The problem is that "planning" CONTINUES to issue permits for more & more residential and business developments to this already VERY overcrowded neighborhood that has no alternative access streets to use ! All the people who live here can not just "avoid the area" :-(

Would taking out the drive-thru option fix this? Turn the space that takes up into parking spots? There's a creek beside and behind, so there's no place to add them otherwise unless buy the property beside and raze it.

Once upon a time, Drive-thru restaurants were not allowed in Santa Barbara. It was an AIR QUALITY consideration, not a judge-what-other-people-eat issue. Idling traffic has high impact to air quality. Politics made the change happen slowly, slowly, and then - boom - now there are a bunch of drive-thrus. Park your car and walk to the takeout window.

Doesn't anyone mind their own business anymore

A suggestion. Whenever you are passing cars that are lined up to turn into CFA, lean on your horn until you are past them. Perhaps the noise will get noticed more than the complaints have been?

The City is as much at fault here as CFA - they approved it. "City Staff has reached out to Chick-fil-A..." - what, as they handed them chicken sandwiches? Never seen the PD writing tickets for all the times I drove by those lines of cars.

@Zerohawk.....I'll post a picture next time.

For those of you who love and crave CFA, I suggest you purchase double or triple your normal order, and simply put it in the fridge or freezer. This eliminates the need to make multiple weekly trips, reduce the traffic congestion, and the amount of time you have to wait to consume your food. Air fryers and mini convection oven heat up CFA quite nicely!!!

I also saw the same kind of back up of traffic at the drive thru Starbucks on Turnpike (cars were basically stopped up to the intersection/corner). Maybe if they can figure out how to fix one they can apply the solution to the other!

This morning around 8:30 AM, cars exiting 101 S. Bound at the 154/South Street exit repeatedly blocked the box at that intersection, so an MTA bus (and everyone behind it) had to wait through 4 green lights to cross the intersection and get in the left turn lanes for the 154. How can so many people think it is okay to block the box in an intersection?

It’s a successful business, good for them.
It’s drive thru in an age of Covid concerns. Might explain the lines.
The lines go quickly, just more & more customers go there.
If the City would like to pay to relocate a successful business they may be open to that
The landlord might not be happy about it.

Just like traffic on the 101 through rush hour traffic & construction. Stay away from the area during congested times.

There sure is a lot of fuss for low quality fast food. These are the results of end game capitalism.

Always be in the left lane when approaching Chick-Fil-A.

Always be in the right lane when going north on Mission when getting off 101.

Always be in the right lane when approaching BevMo when going east on State St.

I don’t like getting stuck behind predictable traffic, so that’s what I always do. It would be great if other EdHatters could share their traffic avoidance tips.