Safe distancing: Shoppers adjust to queues, floor markers as mall operators effect changes

SINGAPORE — Commuters exiting Punggol MRT Station on Friday (March 27) at lunch time were met with two long, snaking queues forming outside the entrance of Waterway Point mall.

Around 30 shoppers were queueing patiently in each fast-moving line which stretched across three storefronts — standing at least a metre apart from one another.

Shoppers were issued a slip with a QR code when they entered the mall, which they had to return when they exited the building in order for the mall management to monitor the numbers inside.

Over at Bishan’s Junction 8, security guards were stationed at the entrance to control human traffic leading to the basement, while at Nex mall in Serangoon, officers in black ushered shoppers to the queue.

These measures have been rolled out in compliance with the stricter safe-distancing measures announced by the Government on March 20 in which malls were asked to take steps to limit the number of shoppers on their premises.

A shopper is directed to exit 313@Somerset to enter Orchard Gateway from another entrance as the linkway between the two centres is closed on March 27, 2020. Photo: Yong Jun Yuan/ TODAY

In a joint statement issued along with a list of frequently asked questions on Thursday, the Singapore Tourism Board, Enterprise Singapore, the Housing and Development Board and the Urban Redevelopment Authority said that the measures will run until April 30.

They include reducing the number of entrances, deploying employees to control visitors entering and leaving the premises and issuing tickets to visitors to ensure that the numbers do not exceed the mall’s allowable capacity.

This can be computed using the approved gross floor area of a shopping centre’s retail component, based on one person for 16 sqm.

Malls must also make sure that there is at least 1m spacing between persons standing in queues, including those outside the premises. The reduction of the number of entrances “should not lead to a congregation of visitors outside the mall”.

TODAY visited five malls on Friday and found that most shoppers were queueing in an orderly fashion and practising safe distancing while waiting to be allowed entry.

But while officers are taking count or issuing slips to people, many shoppers could be found hanging out in groups around the perimeter of the malls.

One of them is Madam Yeoh Bee Leng, who was accompanied by her husband and foreign domestic worker.

The trio first thought the mall was closed when they saw that the side entrance closest to their house was shut.

The 60-year-old said: “I didn’t know they are (implementing) this today… We had to walk around the mall to the main entrance. Then we saw the long queue.”

Five minutes later, they were allowed entry through a separate lane by an officer employed by the mall.

Also in the queues were delivery riders, who groused that the new measures disrupted their work, especially when they are constantly in a rush.

Safe distancing is being enforced by a guard outside 313@Somerset as people are told to maintain a 1m gap between one another on March 27, 2020. Photo: Yong Jun Yuan/TODAY

At Nex, couriers and delivery riders were allowed into the mall through an empty separate lane not available to shoppers.

But at Waterway Point and Junction 8, GrabFood riders could be seen in the queues.

A rider who wanted to be known only as Mr Ismail, 27, said that he had taken two orders from the mall and on both occasions, he had to queue up.

“It’s very troublesome because you have to queue up every single time you want to enter the mall. The mall also has two wings, so if you enter the wrong side, you have to go back to the entrance and queue again to enter the other side,” he said.

At the basement of Waterway Point, linkways that connect the two wings were closed to shoppers.

Although the measures have caused inconvenience to many, shoppers told TODAY that they are necessary and may take some time to adjust to.

Urinals have been marked out as part of safe-distancing measures on March 27, 2020. Yong Jun Yuan/TODAY

“I came here to buy a few things but did not know I had to queue. I even tried to enter through several other entrances,” said a 70-year-old shopper who declined to be named.

But when asked whether she found the measures to be an inconvenience, she told TODAY in Mandarin that safety is still paramount during the pandemic and she supported the move.

At Junction 8, a shopper who was queueing up for lunch and wanted to be known only as Mr Ang said: “I still haven’t gotten used to the social distancing measures yet.”

He added that he was aware of the measures and has been trying his best to keep to the markers on the floor.

At Nex, Madam Nurazliyana Gafoor, 38, said: “I think Singaporeans will slowly adjust to these new changes. At least we have these markers to tell us where to stand.”

The freelance media professional said that these measures are necessary to contain the spread of the virus and to ensure that Singapore “can do as much as we can”.

HEALTH AND SAFETY OF SHOPPERS 

Mall operators interviewed by TODAY said that they are abiding by the Ministry of Health's guidelines and restricting capacity to no more than one person per 16 sqm.

Mapletree, which manages VivoCity, said that as an added precaution, the above-ground multi-storey car park will also be closed temporarily from Friday onwards to reduce the number of visitors to the mall.

VivoCity is also the first mall in Singapore to deploy a thermal scanner at its entrance to conduct temperature screenings.

It will also redeploy 11 staff members from its anchor tenant, cinema operator Golden Village — which has temporarily closed — to serve as “social distancing ambassadors”.

They will rove the mall daily, advising shoppers on safe distancing and dispersing groups with more than 10 people, said its spokesperson.

Safe distancing at food and beverage outlets at Tampines Mall on March 27, 2020. Raj Nadarajan/TODAY

Similarly, Ms Jenny Khoo, head of asset operations at Lendlease, which manages malls such as Jem, 313@Somerset and Parkway Parade, said the company is working together with its tenants to put safe distancing measures in place.

She added that the malls have put in place several procedures such as directing shoppers to manned entrances and deploying security staff members for crowd control.

A spokesperson for Frasers Property Retail, which manages Waterway Point, The Centrepoint and Changi City Point, said that they are limiting the number of people in a mall at any one time by tracking shopper traffic at the designated entry and exit points.

“Additional manpower has been deployed to oversee these safe-distancing measures. At the same time, existing measures to space out shopper queues for our mall services and F&B outlets, such as floor markers, will continue,” said the spokesperson.

Similarly, CapitaLand, which manages malls such as Raffles City Shopping Centre, Bugis+ and Funan, said that it will reduce peak-hour crowding by diverting traffic at some of its properties to a different route.

“In these cases, we have deployed service ambassadors from our security and retail management teams to help manage the traffic,” said its spokesperson.