"whites-only" restroom. he was the first black college student to be killed for his actions supporting the civil rights movement. access for people with disabilities public toilets have frequently been inaccessible to people with disabilities. in the united states, all public toilets in federal buildings were required to be accessible to people with disabilities by the architectural barriers act of 1968. these requirements were extended to all public buildings by the americans with disabilities act of 1990. access for transgender and gender non-conforming people access to public toilets for transgender and gender non-conforming people is often contested. in the united states, various bathroom bills have been put forward to define who can have public toilet access, and on what terms. many of these bills seek to criminalize usage by people whose gender identity does not match the sex on their birth certificates. a variety of reasons have been put forward for these measures, including protecting the privacy of females, avoidance of retraumatization in females affected by male violence, and to protect females from being assaulted by males donning disguises, although there is no evidence of the latter ever having occurred in the past. the uk’s equality and human rights commission published guidance in 2022 outlining scenarios where it considered exclusion of transgender people from single-sex spaces to be justifiable and proportionate. while transgender public toilet usage has been labelled as a moral panic, the ongoing discourse continues to have significant impacts on this group. health aspects health problems from lack of public toilets public toilets play a role in community health and individual well-being. where toilets are available, people can enjoy outings and physical activities in their communities. by letting people get out of their cars and onto their feet, bicycles and mass transit, public toilets can contribute to improved environmental health. mental well-being is enhanced when people are out with families and friends and know a place "to go" is available. public toilets also serve people who are "toilet challenged". first, some people need to go very frequently, including young and old people, people who are pregnant or menstruating, and those with some medical conditions. second, some people need toilet access urgently, suddenly and without warning: such as those with chronic conditions such as crohn's disease and colitis, and those temporarily afflicted with food-borne illnesses. the inability to satisfy essential physiological needs because no toilet is available contributes to health issues such as urinary tract infections, kidney infections, and digestive problems which can later develop into severe health problems. inadequate access to a public toilets when required can lead to substantial problems for people with prostate problems, people who are menstruating or going through the menopause, and people with urinary and fecal incontinence. a 2015 study by the national center for transgender equality found that 8% of transgender americans reported having developed urinary tract infections, kidney infections, and other kidney-related problems as a result of avoiding, or not being granted access to, the facilities. in another survey, the group dc trans coalition found that 54% of its respondents (located in washington, dc) reported physical problem from avoiding using public toilets, such as dehydration, kidney infections, and urinary tract infections. according to the government of australia, more than 3.8 million australians of all ages are estimated to suffer continence issues. this represents 18% of the australian population. therefore, the department of health and ageing maintains the national public toilet map to enable the public to find the closest facility. workers have legal rights to access a toilet during their work day. in the united states, the department of labor's occupational health and safety protects workers' rights to toilet breaks because of the documented health risks. this protected right to a toilet is a function of the workplace and is lost when workers leave the workplace. if bus and truck drivers on timed schedules have difficulty in accessing toilets, this puts them at risk of bladder and digestive health problems. furthermore, if the concentration of a driver in urgent need is compromised, it becomes a broader public safety concern. design public toilet in city park in tomaszów mazowiecki, poland doorless entry modern public toilets may be designed with a labyrinth entrance (doorless entry), which prevents the spread of disease that might otherwise occur when coming in contact with a door. doorless entry provides visual privacy while simultaneously offering a measure of security by allowing the passage of sound. doorless entry also helps deter vandalism; fewer audible clues to another person entering discourages some vandals. doorless entry may also be achieved simply by keeping an existing door propped open, closed only when necessary. coin operated entry pay toilets usually have some form of coin operated turnstile, or they have an attendant who collects the fee. privacy people often expect a high level of privacy when using public toilets. privacy expectations may include toilet cubicles, cubicle doors, urinal partitions and similar. the world health organization states that toilets should be "suitable, private and safe to use for all intended users, taking into consideration their gender, age and physical mobility (e.g. disabled, sick etc.)" and "all shared or public toilets should have doors that can be locked from the inside, and lights". service access modern public toilets often have a service entrance, utilities passage, and the like, that run behind all the fixtures. sensors are installed in a separate room, behind the fixtures. usually, the separate room is just a narrow corridor or passageway. sensors sensor-operated fixtures (faucets, soap dispensers, hand dryers, paper towel dispensers) prevent the spread of disease by allowing patrons to circumvent the need to touch common surfaces. sensor-operated toilets also help conserve water by limiting the amount used per flush, and require less routine maintenance. each sensor views through a small window into each fixture. sometimes the metal plates that house the sensor windows are bolted on from behind, to prevent tampering. additionally, all of the electrical equipment is safely behind the walls, so that there is no danger of electric shock. however, a rccb must be used for all such electrical equipment. some public toilets have an automatic sensor controlled flushing system that flushes the toilet when the user steps away from the sensor. they might also have an additional button that the user can push to provide a second flush. urinals male urinals with partitions male urinals without partitions main articles: urinal and female urinal a trough urinal in a male public restroom. urinals for males are common in public toilets as they are more space efficient than toilets (for urination). urinals in public toilets are common in western countries but less so in muslim countries, partly due to islamic toilet etiquette rules. urinals for females exist but are rare. urinals can be with automatic or manual flushing, or without flush water as is the case for waterless urinals. they can be arranged as single sanitary fixtures (with or without privacy walls) or in a trough design without privacy walls. the body posture for users of urinals is specifically the standing position. compared with urination in a general-purpose toilet, usage is faster and more sanitary because at the urinal there are no fecal germs, no additional doors or locks to touch, and no seat to turn up. a urinal takes less space, is simpler, and consumes less water per flush (or even no water at all) than a flush toilet. urinal setups can have individual urinals (with or without privacy partitions) or a communal urinal (also called a trough urinal) which is used by multiple men. lighting service lighting consisting of windows that run all the way around the outside of the toilet using electric lights behind the windows, to create the illusion of extensive natural light, even when the toilets are underground or otherwise do not have access to natural light. the windows are sometimes made of glass brick, permanently cemented in place. lighting installed in service tunnels that run around the outside of the toilets provides optimum safety from electrical shock (keeping the lights outside the toilet), hygiene (no cracks or openings), security (no way for vandals to access the light bulbs), and aesthetics (clean architectural lines that maintain a continuity of whatever aesthetic design is present, e.g., the raw industrial urban aesthetic that works well with glass brick). cisterns (tanks) older toilets infrequently have service ducts and often in old toilets that have been modernized, the toilet cistern is hidden in a tiled over purpose-built 'box'. often old toilets still have high-level cisterns in the service ducts. on the outside, the toilet is flushed by a handle (just like an ordinary low-level cistern toilet) although behind the wall this handle activates a chain. sometimes a long flushing trough is used to allow closets to be flushed repeatedly without waiting for the cistern to refill. this trend of hiding cisterns and fittings behind the walls started in the late 1930s in the united states and in the united kingdom from the 1950s, and by the late 1960s it was unusual for toilet cisterns to be visible in public toilets. in some buildings such as schools, however, a cistern can still be visible, although high-level cisterns had become outdated by the 1970s. many schools now have low-level cisterns. hand drying options an option for hand drying is usually provided next to the sink. this can be either a paper towel dispenser (sometimes they have auto-sensors for touchless dispensing) or a mechanical hand dryer (used manually or with auto-sensors). drying of washed hands is important for convenience but also because wet hands are more easily recontaminated. paper towels are more hygienic than electric air dryers. other fixtures public toilets by their nature see heavy usage. some high-vandalism settings, such as beaches or stadiums, will use metal toilets. public toilets generally contain several of the following fixtures. in the lockable cubicle (stall) a dispenser of toilet seat covers toilet cubicle door toilet with toilet seat; whereas a home toilet seat has a lid, a public toilet may or may not, and may not even have a seat toilet paper, often within a lockable dispenser coat hook "pull-down" purse holder sanpro bin for menstrual products; this may be classified as clinical waste and be subject to special regulations concerning disposal dispenser for flushable paper toilet seat covers toilet cubicle door lock sign. the toilet cubicle door lock signs are indicated in either colour: vacant is marked in green, while engaged is marked in red at the point of handwashing faucets (taps), note some are at a lower level for children and wheelchair users antiseptic handwash dispenser or soap dispensers, pump bottles or auto dispensers (not commonly supplied) mirror (usually over sinks) waste container / rubbish bin elsewhere a foldable changing table, open urinals (almost exclusively in public toilets for males; although see female urinal) vending machines dispensing condoms, diapers (nappies), painkillers, energy drinks, perfume, breath mints, facial tissue, confectionery, undergarments, swimwear, soap, sex toys, or sanitary napkins or tampons air fresheners or odour control systems infant changing table, often fold-down (usually in women's rooms, but increasingly also in men/s rooms) sometimes showers are also present, often with soap, shampoo, or similar dispensers (often at truck stops) cleaning, maintenance and management thorough cleaning and maintenance are important for public toilets. this task is usually performed by a "public toilet attendant" (who is there during an entire shift) or by professional cleaning staff. they maintain and clean the facilities, ensuring that toilet paper, soap, paper towels, and other necessary items are kept stocked. public toilets need both periodic maintenance and emergency cleaning. volunteer-managed facilities may also be an option in some cases. there are now durable options for restroom stall materials such as solid plastic that were designed to help fight vandalism. solid plastic allows for scratches to be less noticeable due to the solid color throughout the product compared to powder coated steel. powder coated steel chips easily leading to obvious damage compared solid plastic. solid plastic is also an easier to clean and maintain option for public restrooms with high traffic volumes. costs and economics user fees main article: pay toilet a sanisette, a freestanding, coin-operated pay toilet stall in paris. toilets that require the user to pay may be street furniture or be inside a building, e.g.