Rest stop restaurants should be open 24/7

Driving back from Vermont a week ago for a short trip, we stopped on the New York State Thruway to fill up and grab a coffee.

As per usual on a Summer Sunday, the highway was crowded with traffic, mostly families trying to get back to Jersey to prepare for the coming work week. It was early so the crowds weren't too bad for us, but the lines at the other storefronts were starting to grow.

I stood in line to get a cup of coffee for the second half of our drive home and remembered that it was Sunday, so Chik-Fil-A was closed. Now I don't have an issue with a private company deciding to close on a Sunday for what they claim are religious reasons. But, why should drivers traveling across our highways be subject to that policy?

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Let's not forget that Chik-Fil-A embraced the current "woke" culture, so it's hard to see the Sunday closing as nothing short of virtue signaling. But regardless of the intent, or the policy, New York authorities should not have awarded a contract to a food service business that would inconvenience customers who are mainly traveling on Saturdays and Sundays.

They take up a huge space in a rest stop and they're closed on one of the business-driving days of the week. I think it's absurd.

I don't eat fast food, but clearly the lines at the other places were longer with limited options. So the rule should be, if you want the revenue from the built-in highway customer base, you should accommodate all the potential customers and stay open within the hours of the stop.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own.

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