choose the wiser path

They are actually purposely designed like that. They are also often place at the end of corridor after the movie theater in a mall. That's to get even more people to cut through, ideally with their girlfriends.

Trust me, they love it when you cut through... especially if you're with a woman. I actually read something about how because the shape of the pillar (usually for Gate purposes) is a square it throws off human psychology and they see the open space more like a wall that they have to walk around. So very few people cut through that section.