Pay toilet

A pay toilet is a public toilet that requires the user to pay. It may be street furniture or be inside a building, e.g. a shopping mall, department store, or railway station. The reason for charging money is usually for the maintenance of the equipment. Paying to use the toilet can be traced back almost 2000 years, to the first century AD.

In Paris, riders on the Metro may encounter coin-operated toilets in the underground stations; and even non-mechanized toilets occasionally have attendants who accept tips. Some service stations offer a voucher equal in value to the amount paid for use of a toilet, redeemable for other goods at that station or others in the same chain.

In Germany, many lavatories at service stations on the Autobahn have pay toilets with turnstiles, though as in France, customers typically receive a voucher equal to the toilet fee. Elsewhere, while public toilets may not have a set fee, it is customary to provide change to restroom attendants for their services.

In Eastern Europe, particularly in the former USSR, pay toilets are usually non-automatic and are like usual public toilets except that they have an attendant at the entrance to collect the money from visitors.

In the United Kingdom, pay toilets tend to be common at bus and rail stations, but most public toilets are free to use. Technically, any toilets provided by local government may be subject to a charge as thought fit by the provider. Pay toilets on the streets may provide urinals free of charge to prevent public urination. For example, in London, public conveniences are appearing in the form of pop-up toilets. During the daytime, these toilets will be stored underneath the streets, and only appearing in the evening.

In Argentina, pay toilets are uncommon. Usually toilets placed in public places are free to use but the janitor is seated outside with a dish by his side expecting a tip from the customer. They often have a sign saying "Su propina es nuestro sueldo" (your tip is our salary). It is customary to give them a coin or a $2 bill, especially if you are going to use the toilets and require paper.

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Wikipedia