Fewer visitors at popular spots

PETALING JAYA: Many people are continuing to avoid public areas despite the easing of the movement control order (MCO), as seen in the reduced number of visitors to tourist attractions.

The number of people at Kuala Lumpur’s Central Market was down 67% at 2pm yesterday, compared to the same time on a typical Wednesday, according to an analysis of the Google Maps’ “popular times” feature.

The footfall analysis was done on a sample of 17 randomly selected locations throughout the country.

The conditional MCO led to just a slight increase in the number of visitors to Central Market in comparison to the footfall recorded on the first day of the MCO.

A similar analysis done on the first day of the MCO saw Central Market recording a 70% drop in visitors compared to normal days in the past.

Recent data showed that nine malls across five cities recorded a drop in footfall.

Pos Malaysia headquarters in Kuala Lumpur also recorded a significant drop in numbers, with 30% less visitors.

However, other public places saw a smaller drop in visitors such as the Road Transport Department office in Bandar Sri Permaisuri (-3%) and Siti Khadijah market in Kota Baru (-9%).

Out of the 17 locations, only one – Mydin Emporium Kuala Ibai, Kuala Terengganu – recorded a rise in visitors. The area saw a 23% increase in visitors.

However, most other attractions in Kuala Terengganu have yet to resume operations.

Many tourist attractions in Penang such as the Kek Lok Si Temple, Komtar, Penang Hill, Penang Avatar Secret Garden and Batu Feringghi night market are also still temporarily closed.

This is likely due to the Penang government’s decision to postpone the implementation of the conditional MCO to May 8 as the state prepares the necessary guidelines.

The “popular times” feature on Google Maps shows how busy a location typically is for each hour of the day and is shown relative to the typical peak popularity for the business for the week.