Did you want fries or onion rings with that Neil Gaiman book?
September 21, 2009
The Houston Public Library is piloting a service that delivers books, movies, and music to you car–curbside service at the library! People who have mobility issues, agoraphobia, are in a hurry, or who are just plain lazy can now rejoice!
found via ResourceShelf
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:16 am
I think it’s brilliant. As someone who regularly has to return or pick up books with a car full of children, it would be much, much easier to deal with a drive-through (rather than my current system of going in with everyone, and then unsuccessfully insisting that we are only going in for one minute and don’t have any more room at home for another 25 library books).
September 22nd, 2009 at 9:22 am
I love the idea, too. But I wonder how much the library employees love it….
September 22nd, 2009 at 10:27 am
as a mom, with child constantly in tow, i am a huge fan of anything curbside, drive through [i.e., i don't have to get him and all of our "stuff" outta the car!]
September 22nd, 2009 at 3:49 pm
Southfield Public Library in Southfield, MI currently has a drive-through window! It is so, so popular. 3/4 of my time on the Fiction desk is running around the floor, getting books and other media to send to the window! We’ve incorporated it into our regular hold system.
September 22nd, 2009 at 6:02 pm
Oh, *please* tell me they do it on rollerskates!
September 22nd, 2009 at 7:19 pm
With those specific libraries, parking is nearly impossible — Looscan has about a dozen spaces, one one-car-wide entrance/exit, and you exit into a busy intersection. Having rejected it — the nearby branch — in favor of driving across town just to avoid the cramped parking lot, that sounds great to me!
September 22nd, 2009 at 7:47 pm
If there’s a good reason for it (like the lack of parking), then great. But this is going to get abused so quickly. Maybe it’s because I am an academic librarian, but the thought of doing all of the patron’s research for him/her, pulling the books, and then delivering them to the curb actually kind of offends me. Shouldn’t the patron be a bit more involved in the process? I could see running out and delivering a patron’s book or DVD that was on hold for him/her – to alleviate parking issues and respond to harried schedules, but full-out text reference and materials retrieval? Yikes! I’m all for responding to the public’s needs in new and interesting ways, but I’m just not convinced this is the right way to do that.
September 23rd, 2009 at 8:47 am
Jenny, no worries, it’s all holds — you call/do it online, and they bring it to you. It’s no reference interview and look at the page in the encyclopedia and take notes on it before handing it back to the librarian standing outside in the rain
The text message thing is part of a different thing altogether — it’s that instead of taking only email/phone reference requests, the reference staff is also taking reference requests in other formats. Lots of libraries do that now — “chat with a librarian” systems, etc. They’re in the same article, but it’s not connected!
September 30th, 2009 at 8:30 am
My library system, the Henrico County Public Library, also has two locations with drive through pick-up windows. I can’t wait to have one for my building!