Ever been to a concert or event and spotted those temporary portable toilets? They're usually there to help attendees out in a pinch, making things a bit more convenient.
However, a recent post on Japan's X (formerly Twitter) featuring "open-air men's toilets" at an idol fan event has ignited a fiery debate among netizens. Many are slamming the organizers for poor crowd flow management, with some even questioning if it infringes on human rights and privacy.
This was at an idol fan meet, and the entire row of men's portable toilets had no doors whatsoever, leaving everything "completely exposed."
While men typically face away from the entrance when using a urinal, supposedly minimizing privacy concerns, the design still left netizens baffled. The queue for the event snaked right alongside these men's toilets, meaning both men and women in line could clearly see countless individuals using the open facilities. Talk about awkward!
The video confirms that the queue included both men and women, with the open-air men's toilets just on the other side. The scene left many wondering about the rationale behind such a design.
Some pointed out that these "open-air men's toilets" are actually designed according to guidelines from Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, intended to boost efficiency. In reality, men's restrooms typically have about 1.7 times more urinals than women's stalls, primarily to speed up queue times.
But netizens countered that the turnover rate for men's restrooms has always been decent. In fact, with this open design, more people are now unwilling to use such toilets. And those who opt for more private stalls even complain, "Our line is longer, we should get more space," leading to men also wanting to use non-open facilities, which ironically creates even worse queuing situations.
Other netizens chimed in, saying they've always felt men's restrooms offer almost no privacy. Even among the same sex, being watched while using the toilet feels incredibly uncomfortable and gross, so they always opt for stalls with doors.
As the topic gained traction, one netizen shared images of similar open-air men's toilets provided during the previous Olympic Games in France, which were even more shocking and extreme than Japan's current setup. It left many wondering how such designs could appear in a country supposedly valuing human rights.
While such designs might have their reasons, they mostly leave people confused or outright refusing to use them. Why should toilet privacy be stripped away like this? It remains to be seen if Japan's future policies will offer better solutions to avoid such public discontent.
via： X日本趨勢