Chick-fil-A open on Sundays? One state is looking at a bill to try and make that happen

ALBANY, N.Y. — Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A is known for chicken sandwiches, quick customer service, and of course, being closed on Sundays.

But lawmakers in one state want to change that last item for future restaurants that open.

A New York lawmaker just introduced a bill that would require companies that provide food at transportation facilities and rest areas along Interstate 90, also known as the New York State Thruway, to remain open seven days a week.

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The bill particularly calls out Chick-fil-A locations at the toll areas that aren’t open on Sundays like the other restaurants.

“While there is nothing objectionable about a fast food restaurant closing on a particular day of the week, service areas dedicated to travelers is an inappropriate location for such a restaurant. Publicly owned service areas should use their space to maximally benefit the public. Allowing for retail space to go unused one-seventh of the week or more is a disservice and unnecessary inconvenience to travelers who rely on these service areas,” the bill states.

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News10, Channel 2′s ABC affiliate in Albany, spoke with one of the sponsors Assemblyman Tony Simone.

“To find one of the restaurants closed on the thruway is just not in the public good,” Simone told News10.

The language in Simone’s bill targets future contracts for food concessions at facilities owned by New York State Thruway Authority.

The news station reached out to New York State Thruway on Monday. Thruway officials said that the 27 service areas were part of a $450 million project and that Chick-fil-A signed a 33-year contract with Thruway.

So it’s unclear how the legislation would impact that contract.

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Why is Chick-fil-A closed on Sundays? It’s been that way since Truett Cathy opened his first restaurant in Hapeville, Georgia in 1946.

“Having worked seven days a week in restaurants open 24 hours, Truett saw the importance of closing on Sundays so that he and his employees could set aside one day to rest or worship if they choose, a practice we uphold today,” Chick-fil-A’s website says.

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