If you want to smoke, stand further away

That is the name and message of a pro-sanitary-measures campaign in Prato

Last week, the Tuscan municipality of Prato decided to unveil a new campaign which invites smokers waiting at bus stops and crowded places to respect sanitary rules and go stand at some distance away from groups of people if they want to smoke. Carrying the name ‘Se Voui fumare allontanati’ (‘If you want to smoke, stand further away’) it is a direct reference to its objectives without any subtleties and mincing words.

This is part of the large ‘Ti Accompagno’ (‘I am with you’) project sponsored by the Tuscan Region, which seeks to introduce various initiatives that will help remind careless residents about the dangers of contagion during the times of pandemic and the need to undergo a certain shift in mentality and behaviour in order for the society to benefit as a whole.

Saying no to improper mask-wearing

The ‘Ti Accompagno’ campaign was launched at the start of the school year by volunteers who wanted to make sure that school kids will not crowd while getting on and off the buses and will respect the new rules. It turned out there was another group that was a bit too casual and lax when it came to social distancing or mask-wearing – the smokers.

“The anti-smoking awareness campaign at the stops participating in the Ti Accompagno project was born in response to behaviours, highlighted by the operators themselves, of some smokers who do not go away to smoke and lower the mask not respecting the obligation to wear it even outdoors and especially in crowded places such as bus stops,” said Flora Leoni, Councilor for Mobility.

"If you want to smoke, get away" is the message with which we want to sensitize the users of Local Public Transport. It is an invitation that the volunteers undertake to enforce and for this reason, we have thought about creating a written message that, in addition to presenting the project, also indicates the correct behaviour to follow,” she added.

The resulting idea was to create posters and put them up on all bus stops in Prato and the neighbouring municipalities in order to drive home the message of the awareness campaign.