Since January 1, 2025, smoking in the street, on terraces or even at bus shelters in this large city can result in a hefty fine. Residents and visitors will have to adapt to strict rules to protect public health and air quality.
Goodbye cigarette breaks in the city. A large city has decided to tighten the screws in the face of pollution and nuisances linked to tobacco. This measure, adopted since the beginning of the year, is accompanied by fines of up to 240 euros. A decision which aims to reduce emissions of fine particles and improve the health of residents.
Playgrounds, bus stops, parks, sports facilities, and even sidewalks are affected. The rule also extends to the terraces of bars and restaurants, formerly sanctuaries for smokers. From now on, those who wish to smoke a cigarette must respect a distance of at least ten meters from other people. A constraint which makes compliance with the law particularly complex in a city where the streets are often crowded. This drastic ban only concerns traditional tobacco products. Electronic cigarettes escape the rule. Local authorities justified this exception by arguing that e-cigarettes do not emit fine particles, which would make them less harmful to air quality.
According to local studies, traditional tobacco is responsible for around 7% of fine particle emissions in this city. A significant proportion, especially in a context where air quality is one of the worst in the country. A local elected official, herself a smoker, took the lead in defending this measure. She says she wants to set an example by reducing her own tobacco consumption. “This smoking ban is a concrete measure from which everyone can benefit – both in terms of personal health and general well-being”she explained.
Failure to comply with these rules can be costly: a fine of 240 euros is provided for offenders. This sum aims to dissuade smokers from defying the ban and to partly finance awareness campaigns on the effects of tobacco and pollution. The city in question is none other than Milan, the first major Italian city to introduce such a strict ban.
Faced with problems of air pollution for years, the capital of Lombardy strives to set an example. By adopting these rules, it hopes to encourage other large European cities to follow its model. Elsewhere, cigarettes are already being driven out of cities, for example in New York, in the United States, where smoking is prohibited in pedestrian areas, such as Times Square.
