TOILET COMFORTS


TOILET COMFORTS
Up to early 20th century - say about 1925’s - toilets were built at a far end of the house, in the courtyard, as they were considered unmentionable or not polite enough or  considered dirty. As houses became smaller with courtyards vanishing toilets became part of the main house, but still were at the end and detached.
Around late 20th century - around 1970’s - as western influence increased, people started constructing toilets attached to bedrooms, and then a toilet for each bedroom has become the standard.
To clarify …… … 19th century is 1st Jan 1801 to 31st Dec 1900
                               20th century is 1st Jan 1901 to 31st Dec 2000
On entering the toilet we expect its floor to be dry, though we may splash water all around while bathing. Of course it is considered bad manners to leave it so. You have to use the wiper to wipe the floor reasonably dry for the next person’s use, before you leave. It is a safety issue also, as stepping on a toilet’s wet floor you can slip before you notice the water, and have a bad fall. This has been mostly resolved with the use of bath curtains, which supposedly leave the remaining portions of the toilet cry. But wiper is still to be used. A majority considers bath curtains as a hindrance, claustrophobic etc. Bathrooms are also used for washing clothes so bath curtains are a nuisance in these cases. Homes have on average a population of 4or 5, and with 2 toilets it may come to 2 persons per toilet.  The issues of a clean toilet is not severe, though the lesser persons per toilet, the cleaner it is.
Away from the home we are in a hotel where all rooms have attached toilet and cleaning issues are taken care of by the hotel staff. Here you have a room to yourself or sometimes with wife. So mostly it is 1 person per toilet, sometimes stretching to 2. Of course there are cheaper hotels with common toilets but we shall take them up some other time.
Between the home and the hotel room is the journey by train or the plane ride. The plot thickens and the narrative becomes interesting. In journeys undertaken by cars, you use toilets of restaurants on the way, so have choice of selecting a clean place. Thus a road journey can be considered as “private”, hence not in public domain !
 In trains you cannot select, and have to use what is provided.
 If you travel in the 2nd class general coach, which would be very rare indeed, This officially has a capacity of 72, but practically carries 90 to 100. Such coaches have 4 toilets. The average comes to about 20 to 25 persons per toilet.
Sleeper coaches in trains carry 72 passengers and generally are full. They have 4 toilets and the average comes to 18 per toilet.
AC-3 coaches of the earlier design have 64 berths, and the newer design have 72 berths. They have 4 toilets, so the average comes to 16 or 18 persons per toilet.
AC-2 coaches have 48 berths and 4 toilets, so the average comes to 12 persons per toilet.
AC-1 coaches have 28 berths and 4 toilets, so the average comes to 7 persons per toilet. In half AC-1 coaches there only 2 toilets, so the average is same.
AC chair cars have 78 seats and 4 toilets, so the average comes to 19or 20. Some coaches have only 3 toilets, so the average increases to 26 persons per toilet.
 Double Decker AC chair cars are coaches having 120 seats and 4 toilets, so the average comes to 30 persons per toilet.
Summing up for trains …
General Coach – –- 20 to 25 passengers per toilet
Sleeper ---------------18
AC-3 ---------------- 16 to 18
AC-2 ---------------- 12
AC-1 ---------------- 7
AC-chair car ------- 19 to 26
Double Decker ---- 30
How many toilets would be clean often varies. It would be better at starting stations and different a few hours into the journey. Double Decker is the most crowded and certainly has the maximum pressure. Surely the toilet would be unfit for use after a couple of hours into the journey, so it would be advisable to go prepared from home ! The Railways are seized of the situation and prominently display contact numbers in coaches to beckon cleaning crews, but they are sometimes available only at bigger junctions and that may be up to an hour or half away.
In air journeys also you have no choice, and have to use what is provided. Most planes in use in India are Airbus 320 or 737. They carry around 200 persons which include the passengers and staff, and have 3 toilets. The average here is the highest - 67 per toilet. Passengers are wary of using toilets while flying, so cleanliness of toilets could be either way.
To sum up, toilets outside homes while travelling are a sticky issue. Mostly people come prepared to sit out the journey without going to it. There are no choices really !!!

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