Pittsburgh City Council has given preliminary approval to a plan that would bring 11 new mobile toilets to the city.
The program would use $600,000 of American Rescue Plan Act COVID relief money over two years, and the toilets would be acquired through a DC startup, Throne Labs.
The bathrooms, metal pods with a handicapped accessible ramp, would have heat and running water and be cleaned regularly. Unlocking the bathroom requires scanning a QR code, texting a number or using an app. According to city’s Chief Financial Officer Patrick Cornell, the city plans to distribute physical access cards for people who don’t have phones.
The bathrooms would be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m, Cornell said. An automatic alert will go out if someone is inside for longer than 10 minutes, notifying a servicer to come and see if something’s wrong. The app can list locations of other facilities, and display real-time cleanliness ratings submitted by users.
Cornell identified 11 locations for the new facilities, with multiple sites Downtown and on the North Side, as well as locations that include the South Side’s trailside Color Park and East Liberty Presbyterian Church.
Throne toilets have been set up in other cities, including Los Angeles, Fairfax, Va. and in Washington, D.C. on the National Mall, he added.
The city plans to partner on the program with the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, which operates a current public toilet already. But while Cornell told Council on Wednesday that there will be “fundraising for additional dollars to pay for a portion of the costs,” questions still remain about long-term funding sources.
Cornell noted the city is also working through ideas for “more permanent restroom facilities,” particularly to work with the Pittsburgh Parking Authority in Mellon Square.
City Councilor Theresa Kail Smith suggested putting one of the bathrooms near the Duquesne Incline. She also asked about the cost of installing more permanent facilities.
“I actually think [the mobile restrooms] look really stupid, to be honest with you,” she said. “But I understand the need with everything that's going on.”
Councilor Barb Warwick said the smart-locking setup seems “a little overly complicated,” but said it may be “one of those things that I'll get used to.”
She also cited her own personal experience — buying a coffee at a cafe just to let her kids use the bathroom there — as evidence for the need for public facilities.
“It's a little degrading for everyone,” she said, and noted that public restrooms are much more common in other countries. “It's sort of like the way of life in the United States, which is odd. So I'm glad that we're doing this.”
