Self Checkout Lanes Are Likely Doomed at Walmart in Scarborough, Maine

What seemed like a great idea just a few short years ago is feeling like one giant disaster at Walmart in Scarborough, Maine.

If you haven't visited the Walmart in Scarborough recently, you've avoided what has become a major pain point and nuisance for those customers that regularly shop at that location. Walmart is known for "rolling back" prices but what they seem to be doing is rolling back the usage of self-checkout lanes.

For the last several months, there have been nearly no working self-checkout lanes at both ends of the checkout area. On a typical day, busy or not, between 2 and 4 of the self-checkout lanes may be operational on either end. Walmart in Scarborough has more than 20 available self-checkout registers.

It isn't a technical issue, either. It's an intentional plan by Walmart. Back in April, the company announced that several locations across the country will be removing self-checkout all together due to persistent and flagrant theft.

While significant theft isn't an issue here in Maine, the cutting back of self-checkout lanes has been very obvious. The Scarborough location has been limiting the number of usable self-checkout registers based on the amount of staff available to troubleshoot issues and watch over those registers.

Which is to say self-checkout at Walmart in Scarborough is doomed. Last year, Walmart promised no removal of self-checkout in Maine and Massachusetts. But as 2024 has drawn, no such promise has been made to continue the self-checkout option for 2025.

Based on the long lines and frustration, customers at Walmart in Maine may welcome a return to staffed checkout lanes soon enough.