Publix eliminates one-way aisles. Social distancing has become ‘routine,’ company says
Publix has discontinued its one-way aisles in stores where they are not required under local ordinance because of COVID-19.
A Publix spokeswoman on Monday confirmed that the one-way aisles, designed to curb the spread of coronavirus infections, had been discontinued.
“We continue to take actions across our operations to help safeguard the health and well-being of our customers, associates and communities. We implemented one-way aisles at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic to help our customers understand and practice social distancing and over time, it has become widely understood and adopted into our routines,” Maria Brous, Publix director of communications, said in an email.
“We will continue to provide friendly social distancing reminders in our stores, through signage, floor markers at checkout and other queuing areas, as well as through our public address announcements,” she said.
The one-way aisles met with mixed results with some customers walking deep into the aisle before they realized they were going the wrong way, and then often apologizing to other customers.
Manatee County has no ordinance mandating traffic flow in retail stores but does have an ordinance requiring masks to be worn in private businesses where social distancing is not possible. The county commission later exempted churches from the mask requirement.
When the COVID pandemic mushroomed into a national emergency, local supermarkets, including Publix, Winn-Dixie, Walmart, Aldi, and Detwilers Farm Market, stepped up disinfection and cleaning, installed plexiglass shields at registers and customer service desks, and required in-store social distancing.
Some markets also began emphasizing the availability of delivery and curbside service.
On Monday, Detwiler’s announced on Twitter that it has introduced online ordering to its Clark Road location in Sarasota County.
“Shop over 5,000 items from across our store online with curbside pickup. Contactless and no fees through the end of the year,” Detwiler’s tweeted. “We’ll roll out to more locations after we test it over the next few weeks!”
In April, the Detwiler’s in Palmetto, 1800 U.S. 301, introduced the market express drive-through, where customers could pull into the twin drive-up area, be met by a Detwiler’s associate, fill out a shopping list, and hand it to a grocery worker. The grocery worker would then dash into the store, scan and bag the items, and return a couple of minutes later with the food items.
Detwiler’s later added the express drive-through to its Clark Road store. With the arrival of online ordering, Detwiler’s has now closed the Clark Road express drive-through.
This story was originally published August 31, 2020 at 3:34 PM with the headline "Publix eliminates one-way aisles. Social distancing has become ‘routine,’ company says."
