# Why don't more people use tech that reduce wait times? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 17, 2009, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387 "2009-04-17T05:43:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![atomicbadgerrace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@atomicbadgerrace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/atomicbadgerrace)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/81 "2009-04-19T18:43:50Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > It’s not the choosing the self-service checkout that makes people selfish and uncaring, IMHO- it’s trying to take the moral high ground for doing so that does. :dubious: I don’t think morality factors into it at all. The only person I’ve really seen crucifying themselves in the name of morality is… you… for _not_ doing so. [QUOTE=Broomstick] Nope, I don’t use plastic at the gas station. I go inside, hand the attendant a $10 or a $20, and go put gas in my vehicle. I used to use plastic, until I started getting double charged and overcharged and had to take time out of my busy day to get that sorted out. [/QUOTE] Huh. As I said upthread, I’ve never even _heard_ of this being a common problem. I’d say the issue was more with the gas station rather than the method of payment. [QUOTE=Broomstick] lso, not all of us use tollways on a regular basis. I use our tollways maybe once every 2-3 years. For me it’s less bother just to allow time to go through the cash lanes than to buy some piece of junk that will sit in my vehicle with no purpose for years at a time. [/QUOTE] This is more a regional thing, for sure. For those of us that do use toll roads daily, the EZPass saves quite a bit of time. I can cruise through at highway speed and never even notice the 15 minute backup for the cash lanes off to the side. > [@](#): > > Yes, because I would then have absolutely no way to check that the scanned price was the correct price. Or don’t you realize that such errors are common? Aren’t you paying attention when they scan your items? I feel like you’re living your entire life as “the exception.” I do pay attention when my groceries are scanned (either by cashier or by myself), and I’ve only noticed a price discrepancy… twice? Only once that I can actually remember, but I’ll play along and give you a freebie. So, the gas station always double charges you and the grocery store commonly tries to overcharge you. How do these places stay in business! :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/82 "2009-04-19T21:11:08Z")
> [@atomicbadgerrace](#): > > So, the gas station always double charges you and the grocery store commonly tries to overcharge you. How do these places stay in business! :rolleyes: Some of them don’t. Really, it’s that simple. I only use “modern conveniences” when they are convenient _to me_ - otherwise I’m perfectly happy to do things the old fashioned way, like paying in cash. Doubly so when it absolutely prevents problems like being overcharged for something. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/83 "2009-04-20T07:01:10Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Some of them don’t. Really, it’s that simple. > > I only use “modern conveniences” when they are convenient _to me_ - otherwise I’m perfectly happy to do things the old fashioned way, like paying in cash. Doubly so when it absolutely prevents problems like being overcharged for something. Me too, but It would seem we’re in the minority, I’m afraid. ---
**Author:** ![HongKongFooey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c4cdca/32.png) [@HongKongFooey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HongKongFooey)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/84 "2009-04-20T07:18:02Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > I’m thinking more public transit here. But! I have Hypothesis G for the grocery: _avoid the_ shortest\* line.\* It has had the most people leave it because it is unusually slow or stopped entirely due to unreliable equipment, merchandise without SKUs/tags, shabby recluses paying in wheat pennies, etc etc. or maybe, they made through the other side. I’m with **Martini Enfield** here, I’ll use it when it’s convenient for me not just a way for them to get rid of some employees and leave me in the same length line-up while they pocket the difference. Plus, I get to scan, bag, and carry out my own things too. I don’t mind doing those things but I don’t like being made to feel they’re offering me a service by letting me do more work but paying the same. I don’t use on-line banking either. I like to go out and pay the bills. I make my living from automation, I certainly don’t oppose it but it’s not always necessary. I evaluate it on a case by case basis, the grocery store hasn’t made self-serve checkouts worth my time. The gas station has made pumping my own gas worth my time so I do that. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/85 "2009-04-20T07:45:29Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Then you walk in and ask the clerk (who is stll there, regardless of who is paying how at the pump, because they have to cover the store) for a receipt. > > The fact is, using the card reader at the pump doesn’t affect the number of jobs at that gas station because the clerk will still have to man the register at the store. So that excuse (“I’m saving their jobs!”) doesn’t wash. All using the card reader does is reduce their workload and saves you time. Which are both positives, imho. The store might have had three or four clerks employed during the day and swing shifts previously, but now they only have one on duty, which is rather troublesome when he has to go pee, or wants to eat lunch, or do anything else that’s not purely robotic in nature. I admit that I do use the cardpay at gas stations because it’s actually something that will save me time. I don’t like going in, leaving my card or some cash, going out, pumping, going in to retrieve my card or change, and possibly buying something while I’m there. I’ve never had problems with the price being wrong at gas stations. On the other hand, my husband usually goes in instead of using the card. This is because he wants to get a lottery ticket. I have had prices rung up wrong at grocery and general stores, though, so I try to keep an eye on things. Oddly enough, the prices are never wrong in my favor. And yes, I’d call attention to it if it was. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/86 "2009-04-20T09:17:15Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Then you walk in and ask the clerk (who is stll there, regardless of who is paying how at the pump, because they have to cover the store) for a receipt. Thus defeating the entire point of “saving time” by paying at the pump, since you’re going to have to go instead to get a receipt anyway. Might as well pay while you’re in there and save on EFTPOS fees in the process. Also, in Queensland, you fill your car with petrol first, _then_ go and pay for it- so again, it’s not like the US where you have to walk over, pay first, fill your car, then come back to sort out the change or pay the extra or whatever. Pay at pump isn’t really a convenience here, and as I mentioned before, the EFTPOS at pump terminals aren’t very reliable, so there’s no incentive to change just yet. > [@](#): > > The fact is, using the card reader at the pump doesn’t affect the number of jobs at that gas station because the clerk will still have to man the register at the store. So that excuse (“I’m saving their jobs!”) doesn’t wash. All using the card reader does is reduce their workload and saves you time. Which are both positives, imho. Interestingly, most of the petrol stations I’ve visited lately either do not have EFTPOS at pump or it’s got “PLEASE PAY INSIDE” displayed on the LCD screen. There’s usually only one or two staff on anyway, and you have to pump your own petrol- I’ve never come across a petrol station with full service in the nearly 10 years I’ve been living in Queensland. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/87 "2009-04-20T09:48:26Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > I don’t like having to get things to scan right, or bagging my own groceries and worrying about whether I’ve put heavy stuff on top of something like bread. I’d rather have someone else deal with those issues for me, even if that means I’m in line a little longer. You don’t know how to bag? 😕 Your cashiers have NEVER ever have any problems scanning items? 😕 I’m surprised… When I was a little kid, most of the times when I went with mom (or dad) grocery shopping, there was no bagger. So I ended up bagging the food while my parents paid. It wasn’t hard to learn. When there were baggers, and almost everytime since I’ve moved out and do my own grocery shopping, the baggers have SUCKED. They just put the things in the bag, completely random. I think the only thing they tell them is “don’t squash the bread nor break the eggs” because everything is so random… I think the exception to that has been some Kroger’s baggers in my recent trips. I’ve been surprised to see my things bagged in an organized way. I do use the self-checkouts if I’m doing a quick stop and it’s just my weekly/biweekly “I’ve run out of milk and cereal” stuff. If it’s my big, buying enough groceries for 4 different recipes and getting extra stuff, then I’m using the cashier. And even though less people will be required, in the places I’ve been there is still someone overlooking the self-service machines. Things like coupons, double scanning, problems with the bag scale, selling of alchohol (or car products), trigger the machine to require assistance. So much defense for cashiers, when most of the time, even before the self scanners, not all the lines were/are being used (at most 2/3 of the lines are open, and that is being generous). ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/88 "2009-04-20T09:52:02Z")
And to add on: I do online check-in only when I’m only doing carry-on. If I’m checking-in luggage, I just do the regular line. At least when I last had to check in stuff, the airport I was at didn’t have a separate “online-check in” vs “regular check-in” distinction for people with luggage. Has it changed now, or is this something that varies with location? And I dislike paying cash at the gas station. I’m always afraid I have to guess how much gas my car needs. I know, I can go back to add more or get my change, but I don’t like that. Especially since I tend to have my car filled (the last few times) on my way to work, on a long distance trip by myself in the middle of nowhere, or at night. ---
**Author:** ![Atrael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Atrael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atrael)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/89 "2009-04-21T18:26:35Z")
I’m not exactly sure what doing the online checkin for the airport actually gets you. Every time I’ve flown, they have those systems at the counter where you put in your credit card, put in the number of bags you have, pay for them, pick your seat, and it prints out your boarding pass and tags for you bag. Takes about 2 to 3 minutes. How much time are you saving by being able to skip printing out the boarding pass? I’m assuming you still have to do all the other steps when you check in. ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/90 "2009-04-21T19:24:38Z")
> [@Atrael](#): > > I’m not exactly sure what doing the online checkin for the airport actually gets you. Every time I’ve flown, they have those systems at the counter where you put in your credit card, put in the number of bags you have, pay for them, pick your seat, and it prints out your boarding pass and tags for you bag. Takes about 2 to 3 minutes. How much time are you saving by being able to skip printing out the boarding pass? I’m assuming you still have to do all the other steps when you check in. The ones I’ve used allow you to print your boarding pass, so you go straight to security when you get to the airport, rather than having to go to your airline’s desk first. But of course, that’s only useful if you’re not checking any bags. ---
**Author:** ![maladroit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@maladroit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maladroit)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/91 "2009-04-21T19:55:51Z")
If I have lots of fiddly stuff at the grocery store I’ll wait in line for a cashier. If I have a Coinstar receipt, several bottle receipts, coupons, and maybe some produce without those numbered stickers on 'em then, yep, you do it and tell me how much I owe you. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/92 "2009-04-21T20:00:28Z")
> [@badbadrubberpiggy](#): > > The ones I’ve used allow you to print your boarding pass, so you go straight to security when you get to the airport, rather than having to go to your airline’s desk first. But of course, that’s only useful if you’re not checking any bags. Right, which is much better than standing in a long, slow-moving line, and then being asked ridiculous questions by the front desk, like “Have terrorists been anywhere near your bag when you weren’t looking?” ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/93 "2009-04-22T18:23:21Z")
> [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](#): > > I was wondering about this earlier while I was at the grocery store picking up a few things. There were lines of people at the cashier-run registers and nobody using the six available self scan machines. > > I can understand it for the elderly, people who have difficulty with dexterity, or people who have a LOT of stuff. While I was scanning my stuff I heard the cashier closest to me telling someone in line that the automated checkouts were open and the man said “I pay enough for groceries, I expect customer service.” > > He was in that line when I walked up to scan my products and hadn’t even gotten up to his turn when I was walking out. Customer service is nice, but being on your way faster is nicer IMHO. > > Also, I love the automated postage machines. Sometimes when I have a lot of produce I tend to avoid the use of these. As my wife says I’m a remedial checker. ---
**Author:** ![YamatoTwinkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/cc9497/32.png) [@YamatoTwinkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YamatoTwinkie)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/94 "2009-04-23T00:05:57Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > Personally, I’d rather wait a few extra minutes and thus ensure someone gets to keep their job. As long as we’re paying people to perform useless, non-value added jobs, we might as well start paying people to break windows and then fix them, or dig holes and then fill them back in. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/95 "2009-04-23T00:20:44Z")
As far as the post office goes, some of those people probably had packages, overnights, registered mail, etc that requires them to stand in line. Or they may not have had a dollar to use in the machine. I rarely go to the post office but when I do, I’m always standing in line for one stamp because all I have is a $20. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/96 "2009-04-23T09:23:36Z")
> [@YamatoTwinkie](#): > > As long as we’re paying people to perform useless, non-value added jobs, we might as well start paying people to… dig holes and then fill them back in. We already do. They’re called “Council Workers” and “Roadworks.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Lurking\_Quahog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lurking_quahog/32/21274_2.png) [@Lurking\_Quahog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lurking_Quahog)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/97 "2009-04-23T19:49:25Z")
[quote=“StarvingButStrong, post:47, topic:493387”] They have that system in the grocery store I shop at. (Stop & Shop, in Massachusetts.) I purely love it. I also shop at Stop & Shop (in RI) and LOVE this feature. I really like the fact that I can bag my groceries the way I want them bagged. I use reusable bags by the way. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/98 "2009-04-23T20:23:09Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I’ll echo the folks who dislike grocery store scanners. For me, they just don’t work well. Sometime I can have a sucessfull hassle-free transaction, but about 75% of the time I’m fighting with it and end up with the cashier person having to reset something. > … What LSLGuy said. I will use the grocery store self check out iff: 1. One is already open 2. I have a few dead simple scannable items. Other than that I just get in a regular line and let the pros handle it. Plus, by the time I wake from my nap, my groceries are already bagged and placed in my cart! ---
**Author:** ![Momofgirls](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/momofgirls/32/21798_2.png) [@Momofgirls](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Momofgirls)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/99 "2009-04-23T20:34:18Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > They have that system in the grocery store I shop at. (Stop & Shop, in Massachusetts.) I purely love it. They have it at my grocery store, too - Giant Eagle in Frederick, MD. LOVE IT. I won’t shop any other way now. Plus they have gas points, so I get several free tanks of gas a year for shopping there. ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2009, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387/100 "2009-04-24T08:51:58Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > To put it another way: Think about what your first job was, or one of the many “McJobs” you’ve taken at one time or another to put food on the table or pay some of those bills that just couldn’t be left unpaid. Now imagine that those don’t exist anymore because people decided they’d rather save a minute or two than interact with another person. That might sound good to you, but it certainly doesn’t appeal to me. One day McDonalds Corp. will figure out how to get a vending machine to dispense the same burgers that some kid currently makes. And people will buy them. Why? Did you hear about that Pizza Hut incident? Idiots tampering with the food and filming it? A machine won’t do that. A machine _can’t_ do that. A mechanically prepared burger can be consistent every time and when you tell it “no onions” or “no pickle” or whatever, it doesn’t get distracted by the hot girl that just walked through the door and forget what you told it. A machine won’t get bored and go up to the roof to throw tomatoes at passing cars. A machine won’t call in sick or tell you its grandmother died so it can go to a rock concert. A machine has a defined Mean Time Between Failures. Humans don’t. So in exchange for some kid losing his McJob you get absolute consistency and food security. And a lot of people will pay **extra** for that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-more-people-use-tech-that-reduce-wait-times/493387.md?page=6)