Transport, shopping centers: the details of the deconfinement are becoming more precise

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The deconfinement in France planned from this Monday becomes clearer. Public transport will be reserved for workers in Ile-de-France during peak hours, while all shopping centers will not be allowed to reopen.

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From Monday, 400,000 businesses will reopen, according to the Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire: hair salons, clothing stores, florists and bookstores in particular. With this beginning of deconfinement , part of the French will be back to work, and some will have to take public transport to get there.

On this issue, the government's philosophy is to increase the offer to limit contact. In other words: the more subways, buses, etc. in circulation to welcome users, the better they will be distributed, and therefore the easier it will be for them to respect the rules of physical distance.

Disinfection of stations, mandatory mask

However, only half of the SNCF trains will run on Monday and very strict instructions have been provided: disinfection of stations twice a day, installation of ground signage, but above all masks for everyone. Traveling without this protection will be subject to a fine of 135 euros.

Ten million extra masks should be distributed in stations from Monday and 4.5 million for the Paris region alone where there is fear of a second wave of contamination.

Closed stations and peak hours reserved for workers

The president of the Île-de-France region Valérie Pécresse announced that only 1.5 million travelers will be welcomed, compared to 5 million usually. Sixty stations will remain closed, and a certificate will be required to use rush hour transportation, from 6 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the afternoon. But there will still be 75% of metro and bus trams in circulation.

Provisions likely to evolve, in particular concerning the transport offer which must gradually increase until the second stage of deconfinement, which is supposed to start on June 2.

Complex protocols in shopping centers 

The start of deconfinement will also sound the hour of reopening for certain shopping centers, with the exception of those located in Île-de-France which are more than 40,000 square meters.

A door for entry, another for exit, gel dispensers, no more benches or play area for children… It's a somewhat different Okabé center that customers will discover on Monday morning. This Kremlin-Bicêtre shopping center, south of Paris, is just below the threshold. Auchan and the pharmacy remained open during confinement, but it is therefore preparing to reopen its doors completely.  

But inside the mall, customers who will not be able to move as they want. "  The corridors will be separated in two with traffic direction, for example here, to invite to head either to the hypermarket and the shops that go with it, or to the left," explains Karl-Stéphane Cottendin, director of operations. So, it will be arrows and a marking that will be done all along here in the middle either using posts or then markings on the ground. The idea is that everyone can go as quickly as possible to their merchant and leave the center without having to make unnecessary trips and potentially meet more people. "

No more than 3,300 customers, three times less than usual, can be in the shopping center at the same time. The security and cleaning teams have been doubled.

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In the absence of government directives, the development of this protocol required a lot of work. "  I assure you that we work long days. Since the start of confinement, we have been in constant contact with all of our traders, says Frédéric Merlin, president of the Société des Grands Magasins, owner of Okabé. And we also interviewed some of our customers. We are certain that the key to success and economic recovery is to be able to offer exemplary hygienic conditions.  "

A device that can be adapted depending on how the reopening takes place, further specify Okabé officials.

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• France
• Coronavirus
• Confinement
• Employment and Work
• Transport
• Trade and distribution

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