Should we really have to pay to pee in station toilets? Quite a few trains now don’t have loos on board, so can operators really justify charging us to relieve ourselves after a long, and possibly stressful, train journey?
I get the train into the recently-revamped St Pancras station every morning. Lucky me, because if I need to use the toilets I don’t need to spend a penny.
Not so for commuters arriving just over the road at King’s Cross. They have to pay 30p, and the loos were pretty pungent the last time I paid a visit.
I don’t know about you, but I think station toilets should be free to use. It’s not like you haven’t already paid enough for your rail fare. And what with the inevitable train delays, not to mention the sorry state of on-train bogs – coughing up to use the loos feels wrong.
There’s an added complication. Say it’s late, all the shops are shut and you’re out of cash. What do you do then? At some stations, such as King’s Cross, you could use a change machine to get enough 10p pieces to put through the turnstile slot, but it’s a bit of a liberty.
And let’s face it, what expense have the operators gone to – installing the barriers, cash machines and so on – just to get your small change?
Rail firms should treat their customers better, instead they are taking the (30) p. That’s not customer service, let alone a convenience.