Long Lines Wrapped Through Downtown Montreal As Stores Reopened (VIDEO)
Monday, May 25, marked the day that stores in Montreal with direct access to the outside were officially allowed to reopen. This news led many locals to head to their favourite downtown shops on the first day of their reopenings. And, it should be said that it seemed rather difficult to respect social distancing rules despite the measures put in place by the merchants.
Although downtown Montreal is set to completely transform this summer in order to conform to public health measures, such changes hadn't occurred before the reopening date of many retail stores.
Dozens and dozens of people were waiting in line in front of the entrances to certain stores this early Monday afternoon.
While customers seemed to be careful not to get too close to others, it unfortunately didn't seem to be an easy task.
Other spaces around Montreal, such as Mount Royal on Sundays, where Tam-Tams is celebrated, have also faced issues, with people hardly practicing social distancing, regardless of efforts to.
A long line awaited those who wanted to shop at Place Montreal Trust's Zara on Monday, as shown in the video below.
It was no different across the street, at the Simons located at the corner of Sainte-Catherine and Mansfield.
[rebelmouse-image 26885113 photo_credit="Vincent Dupont | Narcity Qu\u00e9bec" expand=1 original_size="511x550"] Vincent Dupont | Narcity Québec
Further west on Sainte-Catherine, many also flocked to the doors of Urban Outfitters.
[rebelmouse-image 26885114 photo_credit="Vincent Dupont | Narcity Qu\u00e9bec" expand=1 original_size="509x608"] Vincent Dupont | Narcity Québec
And it was the same thing on the H&M side of the street, where the line was progressively getting longer.
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Several businesses have installed devices that allow them to control the entry of customers.
There are lines taped on the sidewalks to help people follow social distancing measures, as well as security guards all over the place to enforce the rules.
[rebelmouse-image 26885115 photo_credit="Vincent Dupont | Narcity Qu\u00e9bec" expand=1 original_size="426x418"] Vincent Dupont | Narcity Québec
Other stores seem to have simply not yet reopened their doors despite government permission.
Stay tuned for more news.
This article was originally published in French on Narcity Québec.
