McDonald's should delay reopening of Aylesford drive thru due to traffic, says MP Tracey Crouch
19:12, 27 May 2020
updated: 15:46, 30 May 2020
McDonald's should push back the reopening of one of its drive thru restaurants as it will cause traffic chaos, a Kent MP has argued.
Chatham and Aylesford's Tracey Crouch is concerned about how congested the surrounding roads could become if the Aylesford drive thru begins serving customers again on June 4.
It comes after the popular chain reopened seven of its Kent outlets with a limited menu last week in Medway, Sittingbourne and Bobbing.
Police were called in Strood after traffic jams meant drivers were having to wait 45 minutes to cross Rochester Bridge.
All remaining McDonald's in the UK are due to open as drive thrus or for delivery by Thursday, June 4.
In a Facebook post this evening, Ms Crouch said: "Well this is going to make me as popular as chewing gum on the bottom of your shoe....
"Let me start with a disclaimer - I love McDonald's. I worked there as a teen and throughout Uni, various members of my family have or do work there, I eat (crave) the food and I recognise that they provide employment for a lot of local people.
"But this afternoon, following an email from their head office, I have asked McDonald's to reconsider their plans to reopen the Aylesford Drive-Thru.
"For those who are unaware, it is small McDonald's with a Drive-Thru that you have to double back in order to get into the lanes.
"It runs parallel to Hermitage Lane which is the main road to the Hospital, which still has a functioning A&E and just off the A20, an already busy main road.
"Given the significant queues we have seen elsewhere around the county when stores have reopened I do not think that this is the right store to be reopening at this time, and although I am very sorry for those who work there and for those of us who crave a sausage an egg mcmuffin (me), I think it will cause chaos and potentially cost lives.
"I await their response."
A McDonald's spokesman said: "We are taking road traffic management on the roads around our restaurants seriously as we begin to reopen our Drive Thru estate.
"We have worked proactively with Kent Police to discuss our plans for all of the restaurants that are reopening across the county, including Aylesford.
"We are doing what we can to manage demand, and once open we will continue to monitor the situation in partnership with Kent Police."
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