Coronavirus Response: Safeway implementing 'one-way' shopping aisles at Bay Area stores
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Your trip through the grocery store may look a little different these days thanks to new precautionary measures at Safeway stores in the Bay Area. In light of the coronavirus pandemic, shoppers will now be required to walk in one direction through grocery aisles and remain two carts apart from other shoppers.
Stores have installed floor decals showing which direction shoppers are allowed to walk on each aisle.
"Safeway is doing everything we can to prioritize the health and safety of our associates, customers, and communities, and to ensure our customers have access to the essential goods they need at this critical time," a store spokesperson told ABC7 in a statement Friday.
In addition to one-way aisles and social distancing measures, stores have also installed Plexiglas barriers at check stands to limit contact between employees and customers.
Safeway employees are also required to wash their hands every hour, the store spokesperson said.
These precautions are becoming the new normal in the U.S. as federal, state and local officials encourage social distancing, isolation, hygiene and shelter precautions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Safeway has 240 locations in California.
The grocery store chain is not the only retailer implementing strict health guidelines due to the virus.
On Friday, Target announced it would be metering the number of customers inside stores at a time and providing employees with masks and gloves.
Walmart announced similar protocol, allowing five customers to every 1,000 square-feet of shopping space.
Floor markers inside Walmart, similar to Safeway, will guide shoppers where to walk.
The retailers' efforts are aimed at limiting the spread of COVID-19.
Get the latest news, information and videos about the novel coronavirus pandemic here
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