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BY JING LIU
ANCHOR MEGAN MURPHY

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The do-it-yourself lane is checking out at supermarkets across the country. According to Global Post, Grocery chain Big Y Foods is eliminating self-checkout lanes in its 61 locations in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

And Big Y isn’t the only one making the cut. A growing number of supermarket chains in U.S., like Kroger and Albertsons, are bagging their self-checkout lanes. KTLA has some of the numbers.

“According to the Food Market Institute, only 16% of grocery transactions in supermarkets use the self-checkout lanes last year. That compares to 22% percent a couple of years ago.”

Stores introduced self-checkout lanes 10 years ago as a sort of express option for shoppers. A Patch reporter explains why some stores are now closing down their virtual cashiers.

“The popularity drop was pinned partly on user confusion over how to use coupons, general delays, and slower checkout machines. Some said they liked the human interaction. In that case, there's long-term hope for bank tellers.”

A store director tells WTIC the change is for the customers.

“The researches show that people coming to grocery stores want one-on-one contact and prefer personal services from our cashiers.”

Of course, The Globe and Mail reports it might not be all about the customers.

“There was also the issue of ‘intentional and accidental theft,’ including shoppers misidentifying pricier produce and baked goods as cheaper items (avocados as potatoes, anyone?)”

A food industry analyst tells the AP stores may also be ditching the self-checkouts because new barcode technology is coming out soon, and the stores might not want to replace the self-checkout machines.

Transcript by Newsy.