Bilingual signs on outdoor smoking sites promoted in the city
Ahead of World No Tobacco Day, local health authorities released the nation's first set of standard bilingual signs for outdoor smoking site on Monday.
The measure is another step in the campaign to create a smoke-free Shanghai, with bans on smoking in all indoor areas and guides for people to smoke only in designated outdoor places in an effort to reduce the harm of second-hand smoking outdoors.
The set of signs was used in a pilot trial in certain venues since last year, and will be promoted in all public places gradually to regulate smokers' behavior and guide them to smoke in places far from gatherings, said officials from the office of Shanghai Health Promotion Commission.
The sign of outdoor smoking area is released by the authority.
At the designated outdoor smoking areas, information about quitting smoking is also available to encourage and help people to do so.
Shanghai now bans smoking (including e-smoking) in all indoor public venues, workplaces and public transportation, however, the public have long complained about people who smoke while walking outdoors or in outdoor places with crowds.
Shanghai was the first city in the country to pass legislation prohibiting indoor smoking in March 2010. The law was amended in 2016 to achieve a total ban. Since last October, Shanghai has prohibited the use of e-cigarettes in public indoor areas as well.
The smoking rate in the city dropped to 19.4 percent, meeting the national goal of reducing it to 20 percent by 2030.
