No Full Smoking Ban Planned for Rail Platforms, Authority Says

A complaint by a passenger who said a smoker was allowed to light up beside a high-speed train has reignited debate over whether China's rail platforms should be fully smoke-free, China News Weekly reported on March 24.

According to the report, the passenger said a man stepped out from a train door and smoked while people were queueing on the platform. After she argued with him and complained, train staff told her they could not manage matters on the platform and gave her a face mask instead.

The passenger said high-speed rail stations should adopt the same comprehensive smoking ban as airports. In response, staff at China's railway customer service hotline 12306 told the magazine that smoking is currently allowed on platforms because they are not enclosed spaces, while smoking remains banned on trains.

The 12306 staff member said onboard attendants are responsible only for services inside the train. If a passenger feels unwell or cannot tolerate smoke on the platform, train staff may try to offer assistance, but they have no authority to stop another passenger from smoking there, according to the report.

Asked whether a full smoking ban on platforms is under consideration, 12306 said it had not received any notice of such a policy change.