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21 September 2012| last updated at 01:56AM

‘Inside’ stories on the Automatic Street Toilet



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KUALA LUMPUR: After several chats with folk out and about, it appears to Streets that the Automatic Street Toilets (AST) are not well-known.

An officer with an IT company, who wished to be known as Azira, said she had noticed the blue structure but was unsure how it worked.

 “I know it is a toilet but because of the closed doors, I do not know what it is like inside and how it works. City Hall should consider putting up more information on its features. It would help if the person manning the toilet is there,” she said.

Noor Apandi Mat Hussain, a bank clerk in Lucky Garden, Bangsar, echoed the view.

“I did not know it was a toilet and thought it was some kind of pondok.

Awareness is low; perhaps City Hall could consider putting up better signs,” said the 47-year-old.

Lee Foong, 76, who sells desserts in Lucky Garden, was the first to sing its praise.

“I am here every day for long hours, and I use the AST three or four times a day. It is good and my friends from here agree with me. Where else in Malaysia can you use a toilet for 20 sen for 15 minutes? It is the cheapest and the most comfortable because it is sensor-based and air-conditioned,” said Lee.

 Tourists Maysam Parsa, 30, and Paul Jeurissen, 52, felt more could have been done to explain the closure of the AST in Bukit Bintang.

“I don’t see a relation between the closure of the AST and upgrading of the MRT. Being Canadian, I would appreciate a notice in English not only for the benefit of myself but other tourists as well,” said Parsa.

Jeurissen said: “It is a hassle trying to find a toilet when I am out walking on the streets and away from the shopping malls and restaurants.”

Koh Sue Wern, 26, a business development executive, said alternatives should be available when the ASTs were closed.

 “Facilities like toilets are necessities and the local authority should provide them, regardless of whether anybody uses them.

“The least it can do is to set up portable toilets (when the AST is closed),” said Koh.

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