Coles has announced new social distancing measures at the checkout to keep their staff and customers safe as the COVID-19 crisis in Australia worsens.

To minimise handling and close contact time, Coles is asking customers to pack their own bags and is encouraging contactless card payments instead of cash.

Staff at checkouts will also be rotated out more regularly than usual.

In addition, there will be new marked signs to queue behind at the checkout, along the belt and at the packing area.

“The length of a trolley (1.5 metres) is a good guide for the distance you should keep from other customers and team members, and we ask that you follow all directions signposted in-store on keeping a safe distance,” a Coles statement read.

Coles have also said that they’ve added extra cleaning and sanitation at the high-contact areas of their supermarkets, including trolleys, baskets, and checkout and self-serve areas.

All single, in-store baked items will be individually wrapped. To reduce the time spent in the bakery section, Coles have said they are stopping slicing on-demand.