Vancouver pubs brace for new smoking laws

Restaurants and bars in British Columbia are bracing for new anti-smoking regulations that put the onus on operators, rather than smokers, to make sure customers comply with the rules.

Scheduled to take effect on April 1, the provincial regulations will outlaw smoking rooms and ban smoking near workplace doorways, open windows, and bus shelters in B.C.

The city of Vancouver is going even further by making it illegal for smokers to light up in a six-metre buffer zone located within the immediate vicinity of building entryways.

In Vancouver, smoking will also be banned on outdoor patios, a move that puts pressure on the restaurant sector, where the owners will face fines of up to $2,500 if they are found to be not enforcing the laws.

"They have the right to refuse service to people who don't comply with the law,'' said Richard Taki, a manager, with the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority.

But as the clock ticks toward April 1, the regulations are getting mixed reviews, particularly in Vancouver, where the tougher bylaws could put pubs and restaurants near city boundaries at a competitive disadvantage.

"We can't be monitoring everyone who goes 20 feet away from the restaurant to light up a cigarette,'' said Georgia Marshall, a waitress at the Pound pub in downtown Vancouver.

In suburban Burnaby, by contrast, the less restrictive smoking regulations will allow customers to light up on open patios and within a buffer zone that extends only three metres beyond workplace entryways.

However, one veteran smoker is taking a different view. Terry Sum, a 72-year-old Vancouver resident, says he likes the fact people who frequent pubs and restaurants are being encouraged to break the smoking habit.

"You don't want people choking to death,'' he said.