The time has come for smokers to butt out in Brisbane's Queen Street Mall.

Lord Mayor Campbell Newman has reluctantly decided to ban smoking at the site after a council survey found overwhelming public support for the move.

A survey of 2000 Brisbane ratepayers found 82 per cent supported a complete smoking ban in the Queen Street Mall.

Smokers who continue to light up in the mall will face a $200 on-the-spot fine.

Under the law, a three-step process would apply with council officers asking smokers to put out their cigarette, before giving a warning and then issuing a fine.