(image: SAMICK Precision Ind. co.)
SEOUL, Jun. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — Indoor smoking lounges at airports will gradually be shut down and outdoor smoking areas will be relocated further away from zones with passenger traffic, authorities said Monday.
Smoking areas will be rearranged at the country’s 14 airports nationwide to reflect the changing social perception of smoking and second-hand smoke, according to the Korea Airports Corporation (KAC).
Gimpo International Airport in Seoul will close the two indoor smoking lounges at its domestic terminal and renovate the two at the international terminal to better prevent smoke from leaking outside. The outdoor smoking lounges will be moved out from current locations a relocated a longer distance away from non-smoking airport users, it said.
Jeju International Airport will likewise close its indoor smoking lounges in both the domestic and international terminals. The Jeju airport initially asked that it be excluded from the plan to better serve all passengers, given the high flight delay rate compared to other airports. The KAC denied the request.
(Yonhap)
