Pooled Queue To The Loos

I'm here to enthuse about a policy I have benefitted from recently. I say 'policy' in the sense of decisions made by both government and commercial organizations (rather than legislation specifically). The development to which I refer is the construction of new public toilets in various locales (including train stations and shopping centres). These innovative facilities are designed as banks or arrays of toilets that are both private and unisex (many are also of sufficient size to accommodate a disabled person in wheelchair with carer).

Each door off of a public space is marked for the use of any gender. Each compartment has a toilet bowl and usually its own bathroom basin too. These new loos have appeared (as far as I can tell) with neither fanfare nor controversy. And yet they deftly address a devisive issue. What ideology abstracts into contrary desires practice demonstrates can be something many of us share. Wishing to go to the same loo as others of your gender identity is a common wish. Wanting to have some privacy at the loo is also a common wish. Most of us want both and these new loos give everyone that. And they offer one more thing too.

As a non-driver I have always walked long distances and sometimes suddenly needed to go to the loo. It can be difficult to find them in public. It was particuarly difficult back in the 90s. Many stations ceased to be staffed and so the loos were permanently locked. That was a desparate time. I sometimes even had to find parkland bushes to hide behind. Things got better this century with the advent of those automatic loos which talk at you and play easy listening piano. But I digress. The point is sometimes you are in a hurry to go.

A complete absense of loos is one issue. Too few loos in a busy locale is another. And this brings me to a problem that was once described in the context of banks. Studies showed that it is more efficient for three bank tellers to share one queue than for those same three bank staff to each serve a separate queue. Customers were served faster if they were in just one line or pooled queue.

Loos that are both unisex and private do the same thing for anyone busting to go. If you are next in line then you can use the next free loo. Contrast this with the situation of separate male and female bathrooms. There could be a free loo right now in that other room you cannot enter but you will never know. And (from my perspective) urinals are fine till such time as you have to sit down.

This useful side-effect of pooled queues to the loos reminds me of the curb cut effect. Sometimes it transpires that a solution to one problem is also a solution to another problem you never bothered discussing. Sometimes helping some in society helps others too. And sometimes there are win-win scenarios that should satisfy everyone. It will take time but my hunch is these will become the norm as new loos replace the old.