People in North American cities know what I’m talking about.
I’ve only seen this in larger cities with lots of people experiencing homelessness, it’s more of a housing issue than anything. In most of the country, and where I live, businesses don’t make you pay to use the bathroom.
I used to work for a retailer with free bathrooms, I went into the bathroom during my shift and found a homeless man half-naked giving himself a sponge bath from the sink. I startled him, he startled me. We locked eyes for a moment, it was awkward, so I shrugged and walked across the store to use the other bathroom to give him some privacy.
Businesses want to avoid those sorts of interactions, protect their bathrooms from damage, and they don’t want people making messes that have to be cleaned up. The guy that I saw bathing in the sink got water all over the floor that had to be mopped up after he left. Once a few businesses restrict bathroom access every other business in the area is overburdened by people only coming in for the free bathrooms until they too decide to restrict bathroom access. In most of the US our public infrastructure completely neglects people experiencing homelessness, so their needs are passed onto businesses which also refuse the obligation.
We have a federal government that does virtually nothing for people experiencing homelessness, state governments that do as little as possible for the homeless, local governments confused and unprepared to deal with the causes of homelessness, and finally businesses (which are the least able to meet the needs of the homeless) that discriminate against the homeless.
Public urination is the highest expression of individual freedom.
In San Francisco, they’ve closed pretty much every public restroom, so you have to do this. One restaurant I went to, they said I had buy something to use the restroom, so I did, then I asked for the bathroom key, and they said the door pin code was printed on my receipt lol.
Oh god that’s depressing.
😰
In Australia, there is a term for when you walk into McDonalds and pretend to look like you are going to order something and then use the toilet, it is called ‘The McShit with Lies’
Come to think of it, this might be a universal term, I wouldn’t know
Meanwhile in Europe I have never not been able to walk into a bar or restaurant and ask to use the toilet without purchasing anything.
I’ve always heard the opposite, as a non-traveled american. That in lots of places in Europe you have to pay to use the restroom in public places but in America there was a big push in the 70s I think to ban coin operated toilets. Basically anywhere that’s not a dense urban area (NYC, SF) or a gas station off a major highway I’ve never had to buy anything to go to the bathroom. In your experience is it just touristy areas where you have to pay?
EDIT: Damn just realized this post is 1 year old wtf lol
Was chatting in the London sun and someone said most of the pay toilets are gone and asked where any where left. I rattled off several places we had to pay. It was all the tourist areas. At least many now take tap to pay, it was bad telling our kid to hold it because we didn’t have a 50p coin.
You can walk into any pub, cafe, and many shops and use the toilet for free in the UK.
