It is a frequently made observation that Americans are very keen on their cars, this is even truer in Los Angeles. The downside of this fascination is that public transport is poor, although there are signs of improvement with significant investment in a new commuter rail system. Nonetheless, a car is pretty much required to life and work in LA and there are many things done to suit the convenience of the driver.
Nearly every fast food restaurant has a drive through facility, although the local Carls Junior seems to have been designed by a Brit, as the window is sited for a right-hand drive car. There are drive through Starbucks, and every American car has multiple cup holders, to support the drinking on the go habit. The seven seater Ford Windstar has thirteen cup-holders. Some are even capable of holding the 32 oz (1.66 pints or just under a litre) Big Gulp drinks sold by 7-11 convenience store.
There are drive through cash machines, by which I am mean you drive up to them and get your money while still sat in the car, rather than use a backhoe loader to drive into the machine and help yourself to all of the cash. These machines include a braille keyboard, presumably to support Al Pacino’s Frank Slade character in Scent of a Woman. There are post boxes in the car parks of post offices, positioned so you can mail your letters without leaving your car. There are drive through laundrettes, where you can leave and then collect clothes by leaning out of your car’s window.
Away from downtown LA and Hollywood, parking is generally plentiful and free. Most restaurants offer take out and frequently have special parking places right by the door for take out meals; you may have to leave your car, but at least you don’t need to walk more than a few steps. Valet parking is a common site, there is even a diner in Beverly Hills that has it. You get out of the car right by the door hand your keys to the valet and step inside. When you leave, the valet returns your car, so you avoid the effort of parking and walking those vast distances across the car-park.
