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Look, no hands! Thai mall puts pedals in lifts to keep coronavirus at bay

Published 05/20/2020, 10:43 PM
Updated 05/20/2020, 10:50 PM

BANGKOK, May 20 (Reuters) - A mall in Thailand has swapped
lift buttons for foot pedals in an effort to prevent the spread
of the coronavirus as well as help restore normalcy and get
shoppers spending again.
Customers at Bangkok's Seacon Square were surprised and
confused this week to find pedals in front of the elevators and
inside, but they welcomed the new hands-free enhancement as a
smart move to stay healthy.
"They did a good job in preparing this. I feel much safer
because we use our hands to do various things all the time,"
said a customer who disclosed only her first name, Watcharaporn.
"Now that we can use our foot to press the elevator, it's
really great."
Thailand opened malls and department stores on Sunday for
the first time since March, its second phase of relaxing
measures as the number of new coronavirus cases slows. It has
confirmed 3,034 cases and 56 deaths.
Its economy, Southeast Asia's second largest, contracted at
its sharpest pace in eight years in the first quarter, pushing
it into recession sooner than expected, as the coronavirus
outbreak hit tourism and domestic activity. The central bank cut its benchmark interest rate for the
third time this year to a record low on Wednesday. Prote Sosothikul, vice president of Seacon Development,
which oversees the mall, said the foot pedals gave shoppers some
peace of mind. "The easiest way to get infected is when you
touch an object that has been contaminated," he said.
"Eventually touch your face and the virus will go into your
mouth, your eyes, or whatever. So we came up with this idea of
hand-free, foot-operated elevator."

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