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2 men sentenced to prison terms for brutal attack on retired teacher in German subway station  

MUNICH, Germany (AP) -- Two men were convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to prison Tuesday for a brutal attack on a German retiree that sparked a political furor over crime committed by young immigrants.

Munich state court sentenced Turkish-born Serkan Aksu, 21, to 12 years in prison. It gave Greek-born 18-year-old Spyridon Loukas an 8 1/2-year sentence - imposed under juvenile law because he was 17 at the time of the December attack.

Surveillance cameras in a Munich subway station captured footage of the pair beating and kicking the 76-year-old retired teacher after he asked them to respect a ban on smoking.

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Taiwan's most popular smoke-free station named  

Hsinchu Railway Station in northern Taiwan, an elegant baroque building listed as a provincial level historic site, has been selected as the most popular smoke-free railway station in Taiwan, according to a poll released yesterday.

At an award presentation ceremony, Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) Director-General Frank Fan said that with a view to increasing the public's appreciation for the architectural beauty of various train stations and demonstrating the state-run company's resolve to protect passengers' health, it conducted the poll with the Bureau of Health Promotion.

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Transit officers assaulted by trio 

Three men have been arrested following an incident in which two transit officers were assaulted after asking a man to put out a cigarette at a Brisbane train station.

The officers were on duty at the Indooroopilly railway station on Sunday when a 33-year-old woman and two men, aged 41 and 61, entered the station about 5pm (AEST), police said.

The three were causing a disturbance, and one of the men was smoking in a non-smoking zone, police said.

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F.A.A. Bans Antismoking Drug, Citing Side Effects  

The Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday it would no longer permit pilots or air traffic controllers to use the smoking cessation drug Chantix, citing potential side effects that could pose a threat to the safe operation of aircraft.

The Food and Drug Administration issued a public health advisory in February, saying that some Chantix users had developed a variety of serious psychiatric symptoms, and that some had committed suicide.

An F.A.A. spokeswoman, Laura Brown, said the agency had approved the use of Chantix for airline pilots and flight controllers last year, but was notifying 150 pilots and 30 air traffic controllers known to be using it that the drug was no longer acceptable and should be discontinued.

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• FAA bans anti-smoking drug Chantix for pilots, air controllers  

The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday banned pilots and air traffic controllers from using a popular anti-smoking drug after a study found that it had apparently contributed to auto accidents and other problems that posed risks to both users and others.

The drug, marketed as Chantix, has been hailed as an innovative treatment to help smokers quit. But a study by a medical safety group -- also issued Wednesday -- linked it to a variety of unusual and serious side effects, including seizures and loss of consciousness, and prompted the FAA to act, agency spokesman Les Dorr said.

The aviation agency had approved the drug last summer, before federal safety regulators began investigating reports of serious psychiatric problems, including suicidal behavior, sharp shifts in mood and vivid nighttime episodes some patients call "Chantix dreams."

A new warning came from a report by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices, based on an analysis of "adverse events" reported to the Food and Drug Administration.

"We have immediate safety concerns about the use of [Chantix] among persons operating aircraft, trains, buses and other vehicles, or in other settings where a lapse in alertness or motor control could lead to massive, serious injury," the study said.

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We have immediate safety concerns about the use of [Chantix] among persons operating aircraft, trains, buses and other vehicles, or in other settings where a lapse in alertness or motor control could lead to massive, serious injury.
Report by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices, based on an analysis of "adverse events" of Chantix use reported to the FDA.

Attempted murder charges in Munich underground smoking incident 

Two foreign youths are to face attempted murder charges for a highly-publicized assault in December on an elderly man who asked them to stop smoking on the Munich underground, prosecutors in the Bavarian capital said Thursday. The youths, a 20-year-old Turk and an 18-year-old Greek, were seen on security television footage broadcast throughout Germany and abroad beating the 76-year-old man after alighting from a train.

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Smoker may have caused subway fire 

A small fire that broke out in a downtown CTA Red Line subway station early Monday may have been caused by someone flicking a cigar or cigarette onto a billboard, which then ignited.

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保加利亚火车全面禁烟 

保加利亚交通部长彼得·穆塔夫奇耶夫６日下令加强火车安全措施，严禁在火车上吸烟。穆塔夫奇耶夫是在上月底保发生列车火灾事故后作出这一决定的。据当地媒体报道，安全措施还包括改善列车乘务员的通信手段，对旅客行李的尺寸和重量加强管理，以及工作人员要充分告知旅客一旦发生火灾或其他事故时如何进行自我保护等。

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Bulgaria's state railways to ban smoking  

Transport Minister Petar Moutafchiev ordered the Bulgarian state railways BDZ to ban smoking in all trains and to strengthen the control over the passengers' luggage, two measures that he said would prevent the repeat of the deadly train fire that left nine people dead last week.

Although there is a standing ban on easily flammable substances in trains, no one is enforcing it, while luggage is rarely being searched, Moutafchiev said, as quoted by Dnevnik daily.

The devastating fire on the Sofia-Kardam train on February 28 was likely caused by some substance catching fire, according to witness accounts, he added.

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• Bulgaria tightens railway safety after train fire 

Bulgaria will ban smoking and flammable items on trains and upgrade emergency procedures after a fire swept through two sleeper carriages last week, killing nine people, the Transport minister said on Thursday.

The fire which began on Feb. 28 was the worst railway incident in Bulgaria since 1992. It has provoked debate about safety standards at state railway company BDZ and prompted calls for Transport Minister Petar Mutafchiev to resign.

Police are investigating the cause of the fire and prosecutors said they did not rule out anything.

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Smoker on subway wounded by police  

He was insisting on smoking while riding on a subway, but police tolerated that about as much as they tolerated having a gun pointed at them.

The incident, yesterday on the Broad Street Line in North Philadelphia, began about noon, when two plainclothes officers riding a northbound subway on a routine detail spotted a man smoking a cigarette between cars, said Jim Whitaker, a spokesman for the transit agency. . . .

But the man became confrontational, according to authorities, drew a handgun, and threatened the officers. The officers pulled their guns, and one them shot the man at least once in the right shoulder, Whitaker said.

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Kanto, Kansai far apart in antismoking measures 

The Kanto and Kansai regions differ significantly in public antismoking measures, as smoking in taxis and on private railway platforms has been banned in Tokyo, while smoking is still allowed in designated areas at many public facilities in Osaka.

Behind Osaka's leniency is a higher rate of smokers in the city than in Tokyo. Businesses are concerned that a total smoking ban could alienate customers.

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Derbyshire | Smoking line drawn around station 

People smoking outside Derby railway station will have to make sure they are standing the right side of a new white line or face having to pay a fine.

The white line has been painted up to the edge of the pavement around the front of the station to mark out the no smoking area under a canopy.

Midland Mainline, who run the station, said it had put the line in place at the request of Derby City Council.

But the city council said Midland Mainline had taken the advice too far.

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Wales | Smoking ban loophole on platform 

Train passengers are being allowed to flout the smoking ban at Fishguard railway station in Pembrokeshire for health and safety reasons.

Station managers say the end of the platform, which is a level crossing, is "too dangerous" for smokers to congregate at because of heavy traffic.

So they are allowed to smoke on the platform instead.

A council spokeswoman said the platform was exempt from the ban because it was not enclosed enough.

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Smoking ban extended in Germany 

A smoking ban in trains and federal buildings comes into force on Saturday, a month after three German states banned smoking in bars and restaurants. Health Minister Ulla Schmidt said Friday she hoped the ban would send a signal to all smokers.

On Thursday, Schmidt and Deutsche Bahn chief Hartmut Mehdorn symbolically stuck a red stripe across a large smoking sign on a long-distance train at Berlin's main railway station.

In addition to trains, smoking will be banned at all railway stations, except for designated areas on platforms and restaurants with special licences.

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