Hundreds of vehicles on Tuesday were among the first to drive through the mass vaccination site at the United Center in Chicago.
Chicago’s health department said up to 500 vehicles were expected on the first day. The city's health commissioner, Dr. Allison Arwady, is expecting up to 1,000 vehicles a day soon.
This will help the mass vaccination site reach the goal of 6,000 doses per day.
“The reason we haven’t done that full 6,000 is because we’ve been holding vaccine to be able to start the drive-through,” said Dr. Arwady
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FEMA says there's a limited number of appointments for the drive-through option and that there's more capacity for walk-up patients.
Still, those who got an appointment say it was just as smooth as the walk-up vaccinations.
One woman told NBC 5 she had been waiting for the drive-through option because she has arthritis that would have made it difficult to stand and walk in line.
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Even if you receive your first dose as a walk-up, you can schedule your second dose as a drive-through, according to FEMA.
The process is identical to the walk-up option but all while sitting in your vehicle, according to FEMA External Affairs Specialist Dan Shulman.
"They’ll roll down their window, roll up their sleeve, the vaccinator will step up,” said Shulman. “There’s a couple more questions. If everything goes okay, they’re going to get the vaccination.”
Motorcycles and bikes are not permitted in the drive-through.
