SCOTLAND is absent from the list of McDonald's restaurants re-opening their drive-thru lines - but there's a specific reason why.
The fast-food giant announced that the drive-thru lanes at 39 locations across the UK and Republic of Ireland will open.
It comes after McDonald's opened 15 of its restaurants in the South East of England exactly a week ago for delivery only, through Uber Eats.
This new list also includes five new delivery-only locations which will reopen.
But McDonald's restaurants in Scotland have been snubbed on all accounts.
The list mainly includes restaurants based in the south and east of England, such as places like Ipswich and Peterborough.
The sites opened from 11am on Wednesday and are offering a limited menu with orders capped at £25 per car, the fast-food chain said.
We are reopening 39 Drive Thru lanes across the UK and ROI. These Drive Thru pilot restaurants were all chosen as they are close to one of our distribution centres as we continue to prepare our supply chain for reopening. pic.twitter.com/HqvctFo63k
— McDonald's UK (@McDonaldsUK) May 20, 2020
Contactless payment is also being encouraged.
McDonald's says the reasoning behind selecting the 39 stores is because they are all close to one of the company's distribution centres.
A McDonald's spokesperson said: "Today we are reopening 39 drive-thru lanes at restaurants across the South East of England and in Dublin as we continue to test our plans for reopening.
"Our teams are still adjusting to the new procedures we've introduced to enable safe working and social distancing, so things might take a little longer.
"We expect a high demand across all locations.
"We are working closely with local authorities and we may determine that it is necessary to close our drive-thru lanes if queues cause disruption or put our employees or customers at risk."
Staff will be temperature checked before each shift and the number of workers on each site will be reduced to ensure social distancing.
Perspex screens are installed at all drive-thru windows and staff will be given protective equipment.
McDonald's is planning to open drive-thrus at all its stores across the UK and the Republic of Ireland by early June.
The McDonald's spokespeson said: "Thank you for your continued patience as we slowly but safely reopen our restaurants."
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