Skip to main content
Home

Main navigation

  • Top stories
  • Health
  • Crime
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Tech
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Weird
  • 1-1-2
Image
Shoppers in center of Rotterdam. A hard lockdown will likely soon be announecd. With this step the government hopes to slow the rapid spread of the Omicron variant
Shoppers in center of Rotterdam. A hard lockdown will likely soon be announecd. With this step the government hopes to slow the rapid spread of the Omicron variant - Credit: Marco de Swart / ANP - License: All Rights Reserved
Politics
Inretail
hard lockdown
Coronavirus
Covid-19
christmas shopping
RND
Saturday, 18 December 2021 - 15:10
Share this:
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • whatsapp
  • reddit

Consumers rush to do last minute shopping; Rotterdam municipality asks people to avoid center

The municipality of Rotterdam asked people to come to the center anymore. The shopping centers have become too crowded, according to the municipality. Rotterdam already took measures to reduce traffic in the center.

Het is te druk in het #Centrum van #Rotterdam. Gemeente beperkt verkeer in Karel Doormanstraat vanaf Westblaak. Er zijn #verkeersregelaars ingezet en #parkeergarages zijn vol. Kom niet meer naar de stad en vermijd drukte. #AlleenSamen #Corona

— Gemeente Rotterdam (@rotterdam) December 18, 2021

Many shopping streets across the Netherlands were busier than usual on Saturday as people prepared for the announcement of a hard lockdown on Saturday evening. In total, around 56 thousand non-essential stores are at risk of closing.

The retail trade association INretail said the Cabinet must be careful not to take measures "in a blind panic" that hit shopkeepers disproportionately. The association said that the government should take an example from other European countries that used a more phased approach with different risk levels. INretail said the government should also speed up the booster campaign. "It is shameful if unnecessary measures deal entrepreneurs another huge blow," an INretail spokesperson said.

Stores are concerned with maintaining social distance, according to the trade association. Enforcement in the shopping areas is not up to the shopkeepers but enforcers such as extraordinary officers and the police.

Small businesses decided to open their doors earlier on Saturday to make maximum use of the time they are allowed to remain open.

The Dutch Retail Council (RND) pointed out that small business owners must continue to sell their products. Much of their Christmas stock is already on the way. The RND suggested that consumers still be able to enter stores by appointment and collect products ordered online.

Reporting by ANP and NL Times

Follow us:

Latest stories

  • Groningen to temporarily house asylum seekers with students
  • Escaped serval spotted in Huizen; Locals asked to check their garden sheds
  • Eight Utrecht residents suspected of robbing seniors through dating app fraud
  • Ameland residents clash with PowNed crew reporting on Sunneklaas secret tradition
  • Some 1,100 jobs disappear as Perry Sport, Aktiesport & Sprinter parent company goes bust
  • Truck carrying 47 undocumented immigrants stopped at Dutch-UK ferry port

Top stories

  • Truck carrying 47 undocumented immigrants stopped at Dutch-UK ferry port
  • Dutch fertility rate falls to record low as fewer women choose to have children
  • Netherlands failed to reduce childhood poverty: UNICEF
  • New parliament sworn in today with 68 newcomers; MPs younger, but less diverse
  • Police catch second man during investigation into three fatal Rotterdam shootings
  • First responders got stuck in traffic on the way A1 accident in which two girls died

© 2012-2023, NL Times, All rights reserved.

Footer menu

  • Privacy
  • Contact
  • Partner content