Like a preschooler crossing their legs and squirming, the need for more public washroom access is getting urgent.
Municipal government attitudes toward public washrooms have got to go – pun intended.
It's an issue being brought to city council in Maple Ridge by longtime public advocate Linda Meyer. She received national attention for her successful 2000 crusade to allow women to go topless at the public pool in her city.
Recently, walking in downtown Maple Ridge, Meyer passed a man with his pants around his ankles, defecating in public. Now she is taking on the issue of public toilets, saying the increasing number of street people in the downtowns of Lower Mainland cities makes this an issue of both human dignity and public health. Poor sanitation is linked to outbreaks of disease.
Meyer will be campaigning for city hall to provide public facilities. If the city brushes her off, her next stop will be the provincial health minister.
Meyer is echoing a complaint made by transit users across the region – there are also too few public toilets available to riders in the TransLink system. In a 2018 survey, three quarters of respondents said washrooms would improve their transit experience. In a more recent consultation, washrooms were the most common request.
TransLink counters they are expensive – it budgeted $6.4 million for six new washroom facilities in 2022. Cleaning and maintenance brings ongoing costs.
However, cities should partner with TransLink to share these expenses and provide urgently needed facilities.
Other cities have found solutions. The Portland Loo is a pre-fab can manufactured by an Oregon company. It is open air at the top and bottom, sacrificing complete privacy so police or the public can see the feet of someone inside.
The Langley Street Loo in Victoria features a stainless steel design and exterior hand washing. Not lavish, but functional, it once polled as the best place to "go" in Canada.
There's something for Maple Ridge to shoot for with its own version – call it The Haney Privy.
German ingenuity devised the Nette Toilette or Nice Toilet system, which sees cities pay a monthly fee to businesses in exchange for them opening their loos to the public. Smiley face branding and phone apps let the public know where they can find one. It's an economical solution.
Whatever answer our cities come up with, public defecation is a serious issue that needs attention.
