"Once smoking was banned in the adjacent 'rabbit hole,' all the smokers gathered over here. I put up several warning signs asking people not to smoke, but it was of no use."
This is what a custodian surnamed A said when he met someone in front of a building near Exit 11 of Gangnam Station around 10 a.m. on the 30th of last month. After spending the budget to transform the 'habitual smoking' alley into a clean air zone, smokers flocked to the adjacent alley. Citizens reacted by saying, "The anticipated balloon effect actually occurred," and "Wasn't this a waste of budget on desk administration?".
◇The 'rabbit hole' in Gangnam Station where smokers flocked… transformed into a no-smoking area with funding
A narrow alley about 3 meters wide, located about 20 meters from Exit 11 of Gangnam Station, has been known as the 'rabbit hole.' It is a corridor with heavy pedestrian traffic leading from Gangnam Station to restaurants and pubs, where smokers have gathered for a long time. In the Gangnam Station area, only the main roads are designated as no-smoking zones, and smoking is allowed between the buildings.
After noticing that the atmosphere darkened and complaints frequently arose due to smokers flocking to the 'rabbit hole,' Gangnam District implemented an environmental maintenance project. Inspired by the novel 'Alice in Wonderland,' they decorated it as 'The Mysterious Space of the White Rabbit.' Green artificial leaves are affixed to the walls in a vertical wave pattern. A sculpture of a white rabbit hanging on the wall has also been installed.
The environmental improvement project in the Gangnam-daero area cost a total of 2 billion won, including 500 million won from the Seoul city government and 1.5 billion won from Gangnam District, while 100 million won was allocated for improving the rabbit hole alley. Closed-circuit television (CCTV) has been installed in the alley, and no-smoking signs are posted everywhere. Thanks to this, since around 11 a.m. on the 30th of last month, there hasn't been a single person smoking in this area for an hour. There were no cigarette butts on the ground.
◇The 'balloon effect' resulting in smokers moving to nearby alleys… citizens say, "Didn't we know this would happen?"
However, street smoking around Gangnam Station did not disappear. Smokers have moved to the adjacent alley next to the rabbit hole, creating a 'balloon effect.'
Around 10 a.m. on the 30th of last month, five pedestrians were smoking in an alley closer to Exit 11 of Gangnam Station. Five warning signs reading "No smoking" and "Absolutely no smoking" were posted, but they were smoking right in front of them.
At the entrance where the 'rabbit hole' begins, five people were simultaneously smoking. Building custodians stopped them, saying, "You can't smoke here," but a new smoker appeared within three minutes. The storm drain was filled with discarded cigarette butts.
Pedestrians covered their noses as they passed by due to the cigarette smoke. A person surnamed Kang, 37, said, "The smell of smoke is the same before and after the rabbit hole construction," adding, "In fact, the area where the smell of smoke is present has expanded. Did we not know this would happen?"
◇Smokers said, "If only they had spent money to create smoking booths instead of decorating the rabbit hole"
Smokers stated, "There is nowhere nearby to smoke, so we have no choice." A worker surnamed Choi, 27, said, "There are hardly any designated smoking areas around Gangnam Station. So, we smoke in alleys or places filled with discarded butts."
A custodian surnamed A from a nearby building said, "If they hadn't decorated the rabbit hole with that budget and had just built a smoking booth nearby, we wouldn't have to beg people not to smoke like this."
There is only one open smoking booth set up in the Gangnam Station area, built by Seocho District. To get from the 'rabbit hole' to this smoking booth, one must cross the 12-lane Gangnam-daero, which takes about 8 minutes.
Currently, there are no smoking booths throughout Gangnam District. An official from Gangnam District stated, "We believe that the 'rabbit hole' has established itself as a site that naturally encourages a non-smoking culture, and we plan to install smoking booths in three areas where many complaints have been raised in the second half of the year."