NS to tackle nasty toilet seats by adding urinals on trains

The first NS train that comes with a bathroom featuring both a toilet and a urinal is debuting next week. The urinal is an attempt to keep the toilet cleaner, and therefore more pleasant to use, AD reports. The simplest solution would be to convince men to sit down when they use the bathroom. But that seems an impossible task. And standing on a wobbly train usually has nasty results. "Men go there with impaired vision", Jan Molenbroek, the 'toilet professor' at TU Delft with 30 years of toilet research behind him, said to the newspaper. "And you have to see where it will end up before you adjust. Some men are fat and can't see anything down there. And with very tall men there's splashing because it comes from so high up. Add to that the poor lighting and a moving train and the you know." Research by Molenbroek and Marian Loth showed that 41 percent of women don't drink anything before boarding a train because they fear having to use the bathroom during the journey. They'd rather go thirsty. "Only if really necessary, people go to the toilet o the train. Women then try to touch as little as possible, hanging above the toilet or covering the toilet seat with toilet paper. Many people find it so dirty that they don't wash their hands. They don't even trust the water." Molenbroek said. According to the TU Delft research, train toilets score a meager 4.1. Molenbroek believes that with a urinal it can score 7.5, as long as it is kept clean. The intercity double-decker trains are the first to boast urinals in the bathroom. NS will wait and see how their passengers feel about the urinals before installing them on other trains.