Safe distancing a challenge as shoppers and MRT, bus commuters converge at some malls

• Long queues have been forming at malls linked to MRT stations, bus interchanges
• Waiting time to enter may take up to 15 minutes
• The Land Transport Authority said that it had worked with such mall owners to provide signs to direct crowds

SINGAPORE — The heavy human traffic at Northpoint City in Yishun can be an unsettling sight, with long queues of people waiting to clear screening checkpoints, made worse by it being located between a bus interchange and an MRT station. The quickest way to get from one transport node to the other is through the mall.

Ms Nur Ain, 21, who was one of those passing through the mall to get from Yishun MRT Station to the bus interchange, said that she was “slightly worried” about being infected by the coronavirus while in a queue with dozens of other people. 

“At least the queue is moving anyway,” she added.

Northpoint City is among a number of retail complexes in the heartlands that have to manage large crowds on a daily basis and having some difficulties keeping to safe management rules meant to curb the transmission of Covid-19.

Last Friday, on June 19, when people were allowed to get back to more activities and have greater movement in the second phase of the economy reopening, someone or some individuals who were infectious carriers of the coronavirus had gone to Seoul Restaurant in Northpoint City in the evening.  

On Tuesday (June 23) evening, TODAY saw about 30 to 50 people queuing near the main entrance to get access to the mall during the 6.30pm peak hour. There were barricades and stickers set 1m apart to get people to line up properly, but the queue took up all the space in the mall’s main atrium and sometimes, it extended out of the entrance.

Apart from a couple of selected entrances, other doorways were locked in order to funnel shoppers to entry points that were manned by staff members to take the temperature of visitors, and monitor that they use the digital check-in system SafeEntry to aid contact tracing. 

Nevertheless, the queues moved fast, with five to 10 minutes of waiting time to enter the mall. Food delivery riders and elders were given priority access into the mall without having to queue.

Ms Siti Rafeah, 47, an administrative worker at Yishun Industrial Park, said on seeing the queue: “I had not expected it to be like this.”

She was going to collect a pair of glasses from a shop in the mall and was there for the first time after more retailers were allowed to open for business last Friday. Non-essential businesses and most retail shops had to close during the circuit breaker in April and May on the Government’s order.

Ms Siti, as well as other shoppers interviewed by TODAY, said that they understood why they had to queue and were not too troubled by the waiting time.

Frasers Property Retail, which manages Northpoint City, said that it had deployed more manpower to help with queue management and to ensure people keep a safe distance from each other.

It is also considering opening up more entrances to cut down on waiting time.

“We all have a role to play in ensuring our communities remain safe spaces, and will continue to work with our tenants to prioritise the health and safety of mall visitors,” a spokesperson said in an email response to TODAY.

Similar scenes played out at Jurong Point. The shopping centre connects Boon Lay bus interchange and Boon Lay MRT Station, and shoppers said that they had previously waited up to 15 minutes to enter the mall.

Although the lines began to get longer from about 6pm as the dinner crowd filed in — reaching lengths of more than 30 people — the waiting time to enter the mall averaged about five minutes.

A 30-year-old sales assistant at clothing store Yishion who gave her name as just CC, said: "The line always looks daunting, especially when I end work close to 7pm, but it usually moves along quickly."

She said that people sometimes did not observe safe distancing in the queues, herself included, especially when the lines stretched beyond the one-metre markings on the floor. 

In response to queries, the Land Transport Authority acknowledged that some malls are connected to public transport nodes and it has worked with mall owners to provide signs and directions to guide commuters and prevent congestion at train stations and bus interchanges. 

Ushers have also been deployed to further assist commuters, it added.

Ms Sun Xueling, Member of Parliament for Pasir Ris-Punggol Group Representation Constituency, posted a photo on Facebook on Tuesday of a large crowd of people waiting to enter Waterway Point mall from the connecting Punggol MRT Station. 

“I know you want to enjoy some time out with the family but I am worried,” she wrote, urging Punggol residents to avoid crowded places and keep a safe distance from others. 

“Let’s not take one step forward and many steps backwards,” she added. “Please be cautious.”