Monday, April 13, 2020

Toronto man's "social distancing machine" stunt fatally flawed

Well, this is pretty stupid. A Toronto guy has tweeted a video about his "social distance machine", purportedly showing that it is next to impossible to maintain two metres of social distance on Toronto's streets.
Maybe that's because the ring he is wearing is actually FOUR metres in diameter (two metres radius). So, he is walking down the middle of the sidewalk, rather than moving to one edge like most people do, and still expecting people to get out of his way. You don't need to be two metres from the wall or the lamp-posts, just from other people. Stoopid!
I've found that most people are pretty sensible about the whole thing, keeping to one side and politely letting people pass, and moving into the road or grass verge if necessary. There is even an unofficial "keep right" thing happening, which makes it all even easier. And, ultimately, if some streets are too busy (like Kensington Market), then find somewhere else to walk. It's not rocket science.
"The Urban Geographer" 's wheeze is being reported, even by local serious press, as clever and innovative. Hardly anyone seems to be calling it "fatally flawed".

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