‘Flick the stick’: What it means for bus riders, visitors to the Durham Station

By Kristen Johnson | The News & Observer (TNS)

DURHAM, N.C. — GoDurham is enforcing a new smoking ban to create a healthier environment for riders and visitors.

Smoking is now prohibited throughout the entire Durham Station Transportation Center, including platforms and concourses, at 601 W. Main St. Previously, smoking was allowed in designated areas outside.

Anyone coming to Durham Station will be asked to put out any smoking materials by police officers who patrol the station from the time it opens to midnight every day of the week.

“We’re not saying you cannot smoke. We’re just saying you cannot do it here on the premises, on the platform and anywhere at the service station,” said Brenda Jones, a GoDurham spokeswoman.

GoDurham has been informing riders about the coming change since February. New signs that say “Flick the Stick” and “No It’s Not a Joke, Drop the Smoke,” have been plastered around the station.

Riders have been complaining about the condition of the station with all the cigarette butts, Jones said. According to the city, over 14,000 people pass through the station each day as it serves as a hub for Amtrak’s Carolinian and Piedmont routes and city buses. Construction is currently underway to expand the station with more bus bays, a new restroom, and added security kiosks.

“Maintenance would do everything to get [the butts] all up, but they’re very hard to get up,” Jones said adding that by the next day, it would look like no one had cleaned at all.

“Riders would also come to us saying that smoking is not good, they’ve got their children there or themselves. They don’t like the smoke, they don’t like the smell of it,” she said. “We just said enough is enough.”

To enforce the new ban this week, five police officers are present instead of the normal two. There aren’t any specific penalties for riders caught smoking beside being asked to stop. For the most part, people have been understanding, Jones said.

According to the National Cancer Institute, Durham County saw an average of 91 deaths from lung or bronchus cancer between 2018 and 2022. Secondhand smoke poses a severe risk to non-smokers, even if the exposure is brief, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there is “no safe level of exposure.”

Health issues caused by secondhand smoke are coronary heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer, and reproductive health effects in women, including low birth weight. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, has also been found to be a risk of secondhand smoke in babies.

All smoking materials are banned at the Durham Station, including cigarettes, e-cigarettes, vaping devices, lighted cigars, lighted pipes, or any other lighted tobacco product.

In 2012, the Durham County Public Health Department adopted an ordinance to ban smoking and e-cigarettes in most outdoor spaces and some indoor spaces such as

- Parks

- Trails

- Public sidewalks

- Bus stops

- Hospital grounds

- Public restrooms

- Public areas of retail stores

- Childcare facilities

For more information about the smoking ban go to godurhamtransit.org.

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