Are Outdoor Dining Areas Any Less Risky for COVID as Indoor Eating Areas?

An interesting article in Business Insider discusses the use of outdoor eating structures that many restaurants have erected to provide service during this COVID pandemic. While it does provide extra seating for the restaurant to help expand what was lost indoors when social distancing actions were put in place to separate tables, there are some drawbacks.

For one, the thought this is actually outdoor is not necessarily true. Especially as the weather cools, these structures are probably not much different than indoor structures. These areas are essentially four walls and a ceiling and thus there is no advantage providing as would be had by truly being outside.

On top of that, there may be no air circulation thus not providing an escape for potential virus. Or air circulation may not be controlled, resulting in one person's exhaust being blown onto another person.

Sitting in these outside structures may give a person a false sense of security in thinking that they are really outside, so those individuals may be less attentive to the need for social distancing or mask wearing.

Business Insider
https://www.businessinsider.com/outdoor-dining-tent-safety-risks-explained-2020-11
Restaurants are setting up tents and temporary structures to extend outdoor dining during the winter. But they come with their own hazards, and in some cases, could be riskier than eating indoors.

As the temperature drops in many parts of the US, restaurants are coming up with creative solutions to allow for outdoor dining. But in some cases, these solutions may increase diners' coronavirus risk.

Since the onset of the pandemic, outdoor dining has allowed restaurants and bars to stay open while offering customers a way to continue eating, drinking, and socializing in a low-risk environment. Outdoor dining has become so popular and lucrative that it's becoming a more permanent fixture everywhere from Milwaukee to Boston. But as we head into the winter months, restaurants will be hard-pressed to convince diners to sit outdoors, exposed to chilly temperatures, wind, and possibly even snow.

Enter: tents, enclosed patios, and even curbside cabanas.

City and state governments across the country seem somewhat split on what types of structures are safe. In Chicago, for example, the city mandates that temporary outdoor structures must have 50% of the sides open in order to ensure air flow. New York City has the same rule, but will allow fully enclosed structures — they'll just be regulated like indoor dining and capped at 25% capacity. Cities in Connecticut and Colorado have similar mandates.

Rest of article - https://www.businessinsider.com/outdoor-dining-tent-safety-risks-explained-2020-11