Taxi drivers have reported doing between a dozen to 20 trips through McDonalds drive thru on a Friday or Saturday night at an average extra cost of $8 on cab fares.

While McDonalds has a 24-hour licence, between 10pm and 6am the restaurant is closed and only the drive-thru is in operation.

“It certainly has increased our business. We were surprised at the amount of trips we do through drive thru. Our customers leave licensed premises then look for somewhere to eat and want to go to McDonalds,” taxi owner Geoff Hutchison said.

There have even been reports of taxis being called to pick people up out the front of McDonalds, take them through drive thru and drop them back out the front, as customers on foot are not allowed to be served at the drive-thru for safety reasons.

McDonalds Store Owner Adrian Sippell said they have not had any problems both inside the restaurant and during the late night hours.

“Everyone has been respectful and looked after the dining room and we don’t have rubbish spread around town,” he said.

Glen Innes Police have no incidents recorded from McDonalds since the store opened.