Public not using 50c a go Portlaoise public toilets

The public are choosing not to use expensively renovated public toilets in Portlaoise.

The public toilets were refurbished at a cost of €150,000 in 2020, however people are still calling into local restaurants and coffee shops just to use their toilets instead.

One Portlaoise councillor has suggested that perhaps the 50c charge is putting people off.

The toilets need more signs to direct people to them, says Cllr Barry Walsh, Cathaoirleach of Portlaoise Municipal District.

He tabled a motion to their October meeting, asking Laois County Council to install extra signs around Portlaoise telling people where the toilets are located.

"This came up as part of the recent Make Way Day when I was escorted in a wheelchair to get a wheelchair view of the paths in Portlaoise.

"I was asked if the toilets were in use. We checked and they were in perfect condition. A member of the Irish Wheelchair Association was happy with them, they are very clean. 

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"However I did a bit of research, and a lot of people are coming in to use toilets in local restaurants and cafés. The owners claim it is because people aren't aware there are public toilets," he said.

Cllr Noel Tuohy supported his motion and agrees that there are not enough signs.

Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley suggested that the 50c charge may be the reason.

The toilet block in Lyster Square had been closed for several years before it was renovated, with anti-social behaviour given as the reason.