It's not uncommon to see taxi drivers, or passengers for that matter, roll down their windows, spit on the road and roll them up quickly.

Ask them why they do it, and you'll get a prompt answer: "Where do I spit if I have to?"

But that excuse will become a thing of the past now that the Shanghai government has decided to impose a new regulation.

The public health watchdog Shanghai Patriotic Sanitation Committee has vowed to ensure that all the 45,000 taxies in the city carry "spitting sacks" within a year.

The sacks will be distributed among taxi drivers free of charge at regular intervals, and will be attached to the riot plate that separates a driver from the passengers so that both can, if need be, spit into it.

The committee conducted a trial early last year by giving such sacks to some taxis.

Early and late last year, it monitored public spitting at 10 spots, including streets, squares, cinemas and bus terminuses and found that the frequency had dropped considerably after the sacks were attached to the taxis.

The spot where 164 people were seen spitting in half an hour recorded just 46 cases in the second survey. And taxi drivers and passengers who had access to "spitting sacks" played a big role by default for the improvement.

The "no spitting" regulation came after Shanghai decided to make people give up the ugly and unhygienic habit and present a healthy city for the 2010 World Expo. Spitting is seen as the worst bad habit and a difficult one for people to give up.

Before the "spitting sack" idea hit the committee, the city's hygiene authorities had attached spittoons to garbage cans on sidewalks.

The concave vessels, however, were not a success, with many people mistaking them for ashtrays. Even the fear of paying a higher fine didn't stop people from spitting.

(China Daily January 23, 2007)