Hey, when you’ve gotta go, you’ve gotta go. However, if your office has four wheels and is mobile, finding the smallest room in the shortest time isn’t always easy.
Unfortunately, London is becoming ever-more car unfriendly and many popular spots have zero places to park. This means that even if you can find a public loo that’s open, there’s a good chance you’ll have nowhere to drop the car. Or, if there is a space, you’ll need a bank loan to pay the parking fees.
This collection of issues has led some drivers to take things into their own hands – resorting to cans and bottles for instant relief. However, some wise-guy passengers have filmed this kind of activity, which has led to drivers seeing themselves relieving themselves on viral You Tube videos. As you can imagine, this kind of publicity is not the sort that companies want.
So, what do you do? Nature doesn’t care that to professional drivers, time is money. Your body works to its own agenda. If it says you need to go, you have to go. Yes, you can limit your fluid intake, but according to the CDC, that’s bad for your health. They say that healthy women should drink 2.7 litres of fluids a day and men need 3.7 litres. Cutting back to simply stop ‘going’ is bad for your liver, kidneys and more.
Using bottles and cans is also not a good idea. That kind of showmanship could lead to disciplinary action at work or even a brush with the law. Which just leaves the obvious – knowing where all the loos are near you day and night. In London these could be public toilets, (Soho Square comes recommended by many drivers), or private facilities in places like: fast food restaurants, supermarkets, petrol stations, shopping centres, train and bus stations, hospitals or even your gym if it’s part of a chain and you have valid membership.
Lastly, there’s the option of using toilet maps and apps to find the nearest public loo. There are several free sources for this kind of info. Here are the best of the bunch:
1. The TFL's help page
This website gives practical info and public loo locations by London borough, train and bus stations and airports. It is useful to take a look at the area in which you operate most and familiarise yourself with the locations to stop.
Hit the button below to visit the site:
2. The Great British Toilet Map
An excellent loo location source. The Great British Toilet Map uses your GPS position to reveal all the nearby public toilets. This website relies on it’s users to update the system so you can add toilets or flag ones that are no longer in use.
Hit the button below to visit the site:
3. Toilet Finder App
Yes, there is an app to find nearby toilets. This app boasts over 150,000 toilets in the database. Downloadable on Apple and Android devices, this app should be able to help you find relief. It is rated 4.2 on the Apple app store and 3.6 on Google play.
4. Flush Toilet Finder App
Available from the Google Play Store and Apple Store and for iOS or Android devices. It is rated 3.5 and 4.4 in the app stores. There are 200,000 public toilets in the database and the users update the listings. This app comes in handy with a great link for directions with google maps.
The highlights:
- Finding a public loo can be difficult in London when driving PHV.
- Limiting your fluid intake is bad for your health.
- Locate as many loos as you can using free info sources.
- TFL’s help page and loo locater.
- The Great British Toilet Map website.
- Toilet Finder app.
- Flush Toilet Finder app.
- Save the best locations to your GPS for faster reference.
TFL toilet locations: https://tfl.gov.uk/help-and-contact/public-toilets-in-london
Great British Toilet Map: https://www.toiletmap.org.uk/
CDC health facts: https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/data-statistics/plain-water-the-healthier-choice.html
