For car washes
Keep the cars moving.
Drivers scan a code on the way in, see their place and roughly how long, and wait in the car, the café or at home if they’re close. Their phone tells them when it’s their turn. And the regulars get a card that counts every wash towards a free one.
The forecourt
A queue made of cars.
- Nobody can see the front of the line from the back of it.
- “How long?” gets asked through a car window while you have the jet wash in your hand.
- A wash is easy to get anywhere, so nothing brings a driver back to you rather than the next place.
The first two are a queue problem. The third is a reason-to-return problem, and it needs a different answer.
Joining
They join without leaving the car.
A code on a sign at the entrance opens a page on their phone. They choose what they want, take a number and stay put.
