New bill will double amount of public bathrooms in NYC over next 10 years
NEW YORK (WABC) -- Members of the City Council passed a bill Thursday that would expand the number of public bathrooms in New York City.
According to legislators behind the new bill, the city currently has about 1,100 restrooms for 8.6 million residents, and only two of them are open 24 hours. The new bill aims to improve that dramatically.
Teddy Siegel knows a thing or two about bathrooms. The Gramercy resident runs the immensely viral social media account Got2GoNYC, sharing stories and tips of where to find a usable restroom in the city. It started in 2021 after she scrambled to find a bathroom in Times Square, ultimately resorting to making a purchase.
"I was so frustrated that I not only wasted my money, but also my time trying to find a bathroom to do a basic bodily function," she said.
Now, she and other advocates are done holding it in. They're celebrating the passage of Intro 694, aka the "NYC Public Bathroom Network Bill," which passed with a 47 vote.
The bill will require the city to double the amount of restrooms to more than 2,100 and at least half of those would be publicly owned.
The city will also be required to make it easier for New Yorkers to know where to go, so the plan includes a comprehensive online map of all city public bathrooms.
The bathroom bill will more than double the number of public bathrooms by 2035 and require long-term plans for funding, maintenance, and expansion.
"No one should have to experience the humiliation or stress or indignity of having to relieve themselves out on the street," said Councilmember Sandy Nurse." New York City has 8.3 million residents, but just over a thousand public toilets."
Supporters say more restrooms help everyone, especially homeless people, the elderly and essential workers.
Ten years seems like a long time to wait to get more bathrooms in New York, but the bill's sponsor does say the city would have a five-year benchmark to meet, as well as a requirement to make sure a plan is in place to keep the new, and old restrooms, clean and safe.
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