LogFAQs > #979203317

MrAntisocial posted...

The self checkout being faster is an illusion. There are usually more self checkouts open

Yes, this makes them faster because you wait less time overall.

At least at my Walmart, there are maybe 3-5 cashiers working at a time. Each one probably has 4+ people waiting at a time during normal traffic hours.

Meanwhile, the single line leading to the 6 self check outs moves faster than each of those cashier lines. Because while the cashiers generally work faster than the self checkouts on a 1:1 comparison...

The self checkout lane is serving 6 people at a time. It's like playing an RTS like starcraft.

If you have one barracks, it would take 6 minutes to make 6 marines. (Not accurate game time, just simplified)

But if you build six barracks, you can make six marines in one minute.

Even if you double the speed of the single barracks, keeping the other 6 at the same speed as before, having 6 of them will still be twice as efficient.

That's how it works with self checkout. Each person is individually slower than the cashier, but they're served at 6 times the rate.