Smoking At Airports
As new interior smoking regulations go into effect across the United Kingdom, business owners and other enclosed structure owners are beginning to respond to smokers needs. Most structures where there is a roof and over 50 percent enclosure with walls are required to be smoke free. Currently, there are a few exceptions to the ban but these areas will likely be covered by the ban in the coming years.
Smoking at airports
Airports are included in the interior smoking ban and are required to abide by the regulations. There are, however, certain areas of an airport where smoking is permitted. Designated rooms are the primary area, while outside venues are also considered an appropriate place to smoke.
Little resistance
There has been a certain amount of resistance to the overall smoking ban, although many thought that airports might have been excluded. Stress is a common occurrence at airports, so it was thought that a certain latitude would be considered. Unfortunately for smokers, this was not the case. The smoking ban is enforced just as stridently at airports as it is in the workplace or pubs.
Reaction
The implementation of the interior smoking ban has and will result in new areas for smoking. Just outside the doors of a structure or on a patio adjacent to a structure will likely be venues if implementation of interior smoking bans in other countries are any indication.
New structures
For the most part, there will likely be a wave of new structure types invented to accommodate smokers in airports, pubs and restaurants. In airports, such as Gatwick, new rooms that use air filters have been installed. These filters separate the outside environment from smoking patrons within the space.
Future expansion of smoking regulations
Bowing to a certain amount of pressure, regulations define a space allowable for smoking as one with a roof and less than 50 percent wall enclosure. This means that smoking on an open air train platform is acceptable, for the moment. In the future this is likely to change.
A likely future
In all likelihood, there will be added regulations and a fine tuning of the ban. If other countries that have instituted similar bans are considered, there will be regulations requiring smoking patrons to smoke no closer than 5 meters from any entryway. This will prevent non-smokers from having to run a gauntlet to enter a structure. Also, although found in more liberal regions, don’t be surprised to find a certain movement to limit outdoor smoking, in certain places, all together.
Airports will find that, in addition to the entry way regulation, rooms will be limited to certain locations away from retailers or higher traffic spaces. They may also be fairly difficult to find. Making airport spaces free from cigarette smoke may be a means of health for non-smokers but it will ultimately be aimed at encouraging the quitting of smoking if history is a guide.