Commercial district quits smoking

A pedestrian zone surrounding the Chianti Plaza in the Xinyi District of Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, has been designated the city’s first ‘non-smoking commercial district’, according to a story in The Taipei Times.

The Taipei Department of Environmental Protection and the Taipei Department of Health yesterday set up signs in the plaza, informing people that smoking was no longer permitted.

From November, people who smoke in the non-smoking area will be liable to a fine of between NT$2,000 and NT$10,000, while those who throw cigarette butts on the ground will be liable to a fine of between NT$1,500 and NT$5,000.

The no-smoking zone will need to be well signposted for those not familiar with the area. According to the story, smoking is banned ‘in the Chianti Plaza and the adjacent Songshou Plaza, as well as in the open spaces in front of the Breeze Center Songgao branch on Songgao Road and in front of Shin Kong Mitsukoshi’s A9 and A11 buildings on Songshou Road’.

There are three designated smoking areas in the pedestrian zone, but there was no mention of where these were located.

The Taipei Department of Environmental Protection was quoted as saying that the commercial district was frequented by many people and that it hoped the new measure would ‘end the prevalence of cigarette butts and mitigate the threat posed by second-hand smoke’.

The department said that it would deploy inspectors to hand out tickets to people who smoked where they were not supposed to smoke.