In Praise of Serpentine Lines

Writing for Wired, Adam Mann explains what queueing theory has to say about grocery store check-out lines.

The models developed by queueing theorists, Mann says, inform traffic engineering, factory design, and internet infrastructure.

The fairest way to operate a grocery check-out, according to queueing theory, is to make all customers stand in one long snaking line, called a serpentine line, and serve people in order as registers become available. Customers generally don't like serpentine lines, though, for reasons Mann explains.