THUNDER BAY -- Attention Walmart shoppers.
The company's three Thunder Bay stores have unveiled new shopping carts, and you'll need a loonie to set them free. Following in the footsteps of other retail giants in the city, such as No Frills, Superstore and Safeway, Walmart customers will need to insert a $1 coin in a slot attached to the shopping cart handle in order to unlock the cart.
"Don't forget to bring a loonie on your next visit to your Memorial Avenue Wal-Mart! Starting today, all of our shopping carts will requre the use of $1," reads a post on the Walmart Canada (Thunder Bay Central) Facebook page.
Reaction on the company's local social media pages was mixed.
"So I do my job as cashier, then I do my job of cart return. When does my shift if unloading trucks start?" wrote a user with the handle Jen Gar.
Others were a little more supportive of the idea.
"Yay, love this! Every store needs this," wrote a user named Harper Gibson.
Others offered tips for anyone who forgets to bring a loonie along.
"The back end of a key (works) too," wrote Ross Pentney.
Metro locations in Thunder Bay do not require a coin to unlock a cart.
In September 2021, city council passed new rules that requred stores to submit plans and pay for abandoned shopping cart recovery if they are collected by the city.
