What to do if there is an urgent need for pedestrians at night in the city? Visit the public toilets on the streets of Shencheng at night: The taxi closed at 22:00 | Toilet | Public Toilet

"The price for each order of 'poor' night shift running is much higher, but I don't want to run!"

"Why?"

"After 10 pm, almost all the toilets on the street are closed!"

Mr. Zhang, a taxi driver who has been renting for over 20 years, said that his biggest problem is not having a place to use the restroom at night. Not only taxi drivers, but also urban night travelers such as delivery drivers, restaurant staff, drivers, and night runners all have similar troubles.

Have all the public toilets in Shencheng closed at night? How can citizens who travel at night solve their toilet problems? The reporter made a field visit.

Most public toilets close at 22:00

As night fell, neon lights lit up in the city, and many taxi drivers gathered in bustling areas to pick up orders. After 10 pm, many public toilets were closed. For example, public toilets near People's Square usually close at 22:00.

The public toilet at No. 340 Wusheng Road is located on the south side of People's Square. This toilet is equipped with an intelligent display screen that can display the real-time usage status of the toilet seat, monitor the concentration of hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, and carbon dioxide inside the toilet, and display the weather conditions of the day.

The opening hours of this public toilet are from 6 to 22 o'clock. At 21:53 in the evening, the reporter saw that the public restroom administrator had turned off the lighting. Two minutes later, a mother came to the restroom with her children. The administrator turned on the lights for them and informed them that the restroom was about to close after work. At 22:01, a delivery rider entered the public restroom. The administrator told him, "The restroom is closing and you can't use it." So the rider went to find the restroom in the nearby underground shopping mall.

At 22:00 in the evening, the public restroom at 340 Wusheng Road has been closed. Photo by Wang Yifan

There is an open space on the south side of People's Square, and on the east side is the underground entrance of the Dimi Shopping Center, where many delivery riders will park and rest in the evening. Rider Xiao Zhang said that there are many public toilets nearby, but only the mobile public toilet opposite Exit 1 of People's Square subway station is open 24 hours a day. "After I came to Shanghai to work, I realized that many public toilets are not open 24 hours a day, and sometimes it is really inconvenient.".

At 21:52 in the evening, a public restroom located at the corner of Weining Road and Changning Road was lit up. Several shared bicycles were parked at the door, and an administrator wearing blue work clothes began to tidy up. He saw the person coming to use the restroom remind him, "Close the door in 8 minutes!" At 22:00, the restroom lights went out, and the administrator checked inside and outside and closed the door again. He rode the electric bike home.

There is also a public restroom on Loushanguan Road, Changning Road, which is a few intersections away from this one. It is fully equipped and equipped with a "third bathroom". The indicated opening hours for public toilets are from 5:00 to 22:00. As the closing time approached, the toilet door had already closed and someone was knocking. A sound came from inside, "I've disinfected it. If you're fast, I'll wait for you." As she spoke, a female administrator opened the door. The public restroom was indeed filled with the smell of disinfectant, and the floor was cleaned clean. There was also a ceiling electric fan installed in the restroom. At 22:00, the administrator tidied up and pressed the close button, preparing to close the door. The family members who were waiting to pick her up from work parked on the roadside.

Before 22:00 in the evening, the light in this public restroom on Changning Road was still on. Photo by Wang Haiyan

At 22:00 in the evening, this public toilet on Changning Road was closed on time. Photo by Wang Haiyan

The reporter found that this public toilet is close to the Suzhou Riverside Waterfront Trail, which is a zebra crossing distance. After 22:00 in the evening, there are still many night runners on the Suzhou River Trail. Mr. Liu, who was jogging on the trail, told reporters, "I like to run along the Suzhou River at night, but I dare not drink too much water. If the public restroom is closed later, running will be more relaxed."

A few parking spaces have been designated next to this public restroom, which is also a very friendly spot for drivers. "If I pass by here during the day, I will stop my car and make sure to use the restroom. Unfortunately, it closes at 10 pm," said Xiaoma, a ride hailing driver.

The public toilets located at the intersection of Weihai Road and Maoming North Road also close at 22:00. It is adjacent to commercial districts such as Fengshengli and Wujiang Road. Last year, Maoming North Road limited time pedestrian street was also opened, and the public toilets are located at one end of the pedestrian street, but the time does not match the pedestrian street. The opening hours of the limited time pedestrian street are from 0:00 on Saturdays to 4:00 on Mondays the following week. This means that after 22:00, there is still welcome traffic here, and some businesses are still open, but the nearby toilets close at 22:00.

Can citizens suggest extending the opening hours

The hasty closure of public toilets at night not only brings inconvenience to taxi drivers, delivery riders, and drivers, but also affects many urban overnight commuters. After 22:00, there were quite a few people on the street who needed to use the restroom. Some theater performances didn't end until 10:30 pm. After the show ended, I found the restroom on the map and only realized it was closed when I arrived. Some night riders enjoy the open streets at night, but face the dilemma of not being able to find a restroom; Some street shops with long operating hours do not have toilets, and employees also encounter difficulties in using the restroom; There are also many overtime workers who have just finished work. "The subway runs until after 23:00, but the public toilets on the roadside close at 22:00.".

A netizen in Xiaohongshu roast, "Don't play the game of one convenience store and one bottle of wine easily in Shanghai", because there are four convenience stores on a 50 meter long street, but it's hard to find an open bathroom in the middle of the night.

At 21:53 in the evening, the light in the public restroom under the Luding Road Bridge was still on, but it turned off a few minutes later. Photo by Wang Haiyan

If there is an internal emergency, where can I go to solve it? Citizens can suggest going to hospitals, hotels, and street restaurants. "Some restaurants are open 24 hours a day, but if you don't consume inside, you feel embarrassed to use the restroom. Someone finally found the public restroom, only to find that it was already closed. It's either to vent their anger or to find it 'convenient' at the entrance of the restroom."

Mr. Ding, a resident, told reporters that there are often traces of urination near the flower bed at his intersection, which is always smelly. He once saw a taxi driver stop by the roadside to urinate after 22:00 at night. "There is a noodle shop near here, which is very famous. It opened at 23:30, and is the favorite of taxi drivers. They can also park there, so they will urinate here." The taxi master Golin often eats noodles in this noodle shop, and he also has roast, "The toilet in the noodle shop has only one pit. If you can't wait, you will find another toilet or solve the problem at the roadside. And after the noodle shop closes, we still need to find another toilet.

Whether the nighttime toilet can be delayed requires comprehensive consideration

In the interview, many citizens expressed that the opening hours of public toilets cannot be simply viewed as commuting hours, which is related to urban supporting services, urban civilized image, and even to supporting the development of the night economy.

Some citizens suggest keeping public toilets open 24 hours a day or delaying the closing time, such as opening them until 24:00 or 1am. "From 22:00 to 1am is the golden time for night economy, and there are still many people on the streets, so the demand for toilet use is not small.".

It is understood that some public toilets in Shencheng have indeed extended their service hours.

The public restroom at 810 Jiaozhou Road was originally closed at 22:00, but has been open 24 hours since this year. Administrator Aunt Zhang said that this street facing public restroom is also convenient for parking, and most people who come to use the restroom are drivers, delivery riders, and taxi drivers. "Previously, the opening hours of this public restroom were from 6 to 22 o'clock, for a total of 16 hours. However, we found from the surveillance footage that even after closing the door at night, people still came here to use the restroom. They found that it was closed, and some would solve the problem in the nearby bushes." Aunt Zhang said that since the public restroom was extended, this phenomenon has greatly decreased.

However, there are very few toilets in Shanghai that are open 24 hours a day like this.

The mobile public toilet opposite Exit 1 of the People's Square subway station is open 24 hours a day. Photo by Wang Yifan

Extending the opening hours of public toilets does indeed require consideration of operational costs. Nowadays, public toilets are free for citizens and tourists to use. If sanitation workers continue to open the toilets after work and fail to clean them in a timely manner the next day, they may be punished during inspections; If the opening hours are extended, it will increase manpower investment and increase operating costs.

For this reason, some National People's Congress deputies suggested that, considering the relatively less demand for toilet use at night compared to during the day, public toilets in some densely populated areas can be chosen to extend their opening hours. At the same time, it is recommended to develop and improve the "Shanghai Smart Toilet Search" mini program or night toilet guide map to facilitate night workers such as taxi drivers and riders to view the surrounding public toilets and specific opening hours.