Pizza Hut is the latest restaurant chain to emphasize drive-through options as the Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) brand announced Tuesday a dedicated digital order pick-up window.

What Happened: Pizza Hut's new pick-up window initiative is called The Hut Lane and will be made available at more than 1,500 locations across the U.S., Pizza Hut said in a press release. 

The pizza chain was the first in its sector to offer a contactless curbside pickup option and it is now doubling down on its efforts to offer a safer experience.

Customers must place an order for pickup via the Pizza Hut app, pizzahut.com or over the phone, then proceed to the dedicated, marked window to collect their order.

If a location does not yet have a pickup window, the order will default to a curbside pickup option so there is no need to exit the vehicle to collect an order.

Related Link: Want To Text Your Food Order? Yum! Brands Acquires Tictuk For Solution

Why It's Important: Pizza Hut's new pickup initiative is consistent with the company's goals of modernizing its stores through digital ordering and other initiatives to improve the customer experience.

"We are giving our customers a variety of options to optimize their pizza-eating experience as we build on our business momentum," said Nicolas Burquier, chief customer and operations officer at Pizza Hut.

"Not only do we offer industry-leading, innovative menu items that are only available at Pizza Hut, we also offer several digital-first pickup options for our customers, and The Hut Lane is a great example of that."

What's Next: Pizza Hut said it will continue developing new plans and uses for The Hut Lane and will roll new features out in the near future.

(Photo: Pizza Hut)