In addition to taxis, Japan is showing not only rapid progress but some of the world's best practice at implementing smoking restrictions at street level; to be precise, some 40 cities and districts have now banned smoking in outdoor public areas such as pavements on its famously busy city streets. The bans are clearly signposted and small areas are commonly designated, such as areas outside convenience stores and other expedient locations, as the only places within designated smoke-free zones where people can smoke.

In Japan, world leader in politeness and good manners, regulations prohibiting street smoking enjoy widespread public support and compliance is high. Chiyoda, a business district of Tokyo, has 40 000 residents but during the day the population expands to around one million. Officials in the district have issued 40 000 infringement notices for smoking in smoke-free areas in the past 4 years, fining people the equivalent of US$20 if they are caught smoking on smoke-free pavements.

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Japan: signs painted on the pavement surface remind walkers not to smoke in streets where smoking is prohibited.