New York City Councilman Peter Koo has introduced a bill that proposes amending the administrative code of the City of New York to prohibit smoking while walking on sidewalks.

Under the proposal, smoking would be prohibited while walking on all sidewalks under the jurisdiction of the New York City Department of Transportation and any location under the jurisdiction of the Department of Parks and Recreation. Under these parameters, this would also include:

  • The sidewalks immediately adjoining parks, squares and public places;
  • Any pedestrian route through any park strip, median or mall that is adjacent to vehicular traffic;
  • Parking lots.

New York City has been known to bring radical anti-tobacco legislation into law. In the past, the city passed a sweeping outdoor smoking ban and was one of the first major municipalities to raise the smoking age to 21.