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by booleandilemma 1750 days ago
Part of the problem in NYC is any time you offer any kind of community utility/service it invariably gets taken over by the homeless population. Benches become beds, libraries become bedrooms, cell phone charging stations become encampments.
3 comments

Almost sounds like the bigger and more complex issue is homelessness rather than people with homes not being able to find a convenient bathroom.
True. I was surprised by the number of homeless people in NY. Especially in the train.
Yeah, it's an unfortunate, "This is why we can't have nice things," situation. I would really love the idea of having public restrooms both for convenience for anyone who is out and about, and to allow homeless people to have some amount of dignity about being able to relieve themselves.

But you're right, it invariably gets taken over and becomes disgusting. And all the solutions I can think of are quite dystopian, like having a video camera that watches you in the bathroom so it can detect any kind of foul play.

I would pay 5-10$ to use a bathroom when emergency.