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It’s been reported that the closure of public toilets in a popular beauty spot Rogie Falls, just outside Contin in Ross-shire, which attracts thousands of tourists and local dog-walkers every year, is now suffering from people using the area outside as a public toilet instead.
Human waste has been seen directly outside the toilets which is now going to cost the council a lot of money to clean up. Not only is the mess unsightly, smelly and unsanitary but it beggars belief that the excuse for closing them is put down (as usual) to the running costs. How much will the clean up cost? How much will the local tourist industry be hit when people come once, but don’t return because of the bad impression given by open air toilets? Could these not be weighed against the cost of keeping them open all year?
When will councils realise that we all have to go sometime and it’s their duty to provide facilities for us?
I understand that in some heavily trafficked tourist areas, there’s no need to keep all the toilets open throughout the whole year, but why have a policy of closing practically all of them in the winter? Indeed some councils close all their toilets in the winter.
Many of these loos are in car parks in towns, where they are used by locals and visitors alike. People still need toilets in the winter.
And what’s the knock on effect of closing thse toilets? In York one landlord has had enough of people coming into his pub purely to use the toilets because the public ones are closed during the winter. He says that 55 people used the toilets without buying anything from the bar in just one day! Read his story.
Of course this masks the problem because people don’t complain to the council when they actually find somewhere to go. But why should a pub landlord have to pay for the cleaning and extra supplies of loo paper etc.
In some areas community toilet schemes are being set up where the council gives local businesses money to open their toilets to the general public. However in cases such as the one above, it does seem totally unfair that some businesses through no fault of their own, should end up doing this for nothing.
However I have to say that the people using the toilets really should have the decency to offer to pay something towards their visit or buy a drink while they’re in there!
So if you visit a town without sufficent toilet provision, COMPLAIN to the council. Their numbers and email addresses are easily found on their websites and if you don’t complain, councils will always be able to say that there is no demand for toilets anyway.
I have just come across an article in the Bournemouth Echo describing the council’s attempt to replace many (if not all) of the public toilets with ‘community toilets.’
To say that the idea hasn’t been welcomed is an understatement.
Some good news for a change :
At least one of the three disused public toilets in Banff could be reopened under the control of a local community group.
A recent article in the Braintree & Witham Times features a young father who went shopping with his one year old daughter, but was unable to use the public toilets as he couldn’t get her pushchair inside with him.
You can’t just leave your child outside while you pop in for a quick visit, so what do you do? The man in question simply walked back to his car and drove home. But what would he have done if he’d arrived by bus?
It’s easy to forget that men often do go shopping with their children in tow, and this should be kept in mind for all new builds of toilets (if there ever are any).
He has started his own campaign on Facebook for parent and child public toilets with baby changing facilities, so if any of you feel like signing his petition his name is Malcolm Featonby.