No tickets handed out yet means smoking ban is working says HRM
Posted Dec 7, 2018 04:02:27 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Nearly two months after Halifax's smoking ban has come into effect, not a single ticket has been handed out.
Halifax Regional Municipality spokesperson Brendan Elliott says that's not a bad thing because it means most people are abiding by the new rules.
Enforcement officers have been told to focus on education and compliance rather handing out fines of between $25 and $2,000.
“Yes, we do have that stick in the toolbox that we can pull out if we have to, if someone is just blatantly disregarding the bylaw, but thankfully we haven't seen that yet,” Elliott says.
Amendments to HRM's smoking and nuisance bylaw kicked in on Oct. 15, banning the smoking or vaping of tobacco and cannabis on municipal property, with the exception of approved designated smoking areas.
Elliott says the number of call into 311 about the ban are down since the first week, in both inquiries and complaints.
He still encourages residents to call the number if they see people smoking illegally.
Even if the bylaw violators are gone by the time a compliance officer arrives, it could provide the municipality with useful data.
“If there happens to be a hot spot where we're getting a large number of calls of people smoking where they shouldn't be, that's telling us that we should examine the area and perhaps put a smoking area there.”
People can also put in a request to have a designated smoking area set up in a specific spot. Applications are assessed on a location-by-location basis.
