Trains need toilet facilities

Back in early March, the newspapers were full of stories about the stranded trains in the Plumstead area of southeast London ( RAIL 848).

Nearly all of the papers told of passengers breaking out of the stranded trains. Many mentioned that one of those packed trains had no toilets, and that the train had been stationary for well over an hour. Some made the unkind comments that some passengers had lost “bowel control”.

I am sure that those people don’t really want reminding about it. But sadly, it’s very important.

We were meant to be launching the new Elizabeth Line with a whole fleet of trains without toilets - we now know that is being delayed a year ( RAIL 861).

One report has stated that there will be no toilets on any stations in the underground section. I think this means that you will have to go up to the ticket hall for one, but this could cause trouble in two ways.

Firstly, if you have a day ticket, you will lose it as you go through the gate and have to pay again.

Secondly, it may cause you to miss a pre-booked connection. If you have booked that connection online, you may lose the ticket price with no hope of a refund.

The first of those two scenarios happened to me. When I got there, all the toilets were out of order. Thank goodness for an understanding staff member, who took me to the staff toilets.

Shortly after the Plumstead incident, the NHS (through its Patients Access) published a detailed report, revealing that 20% of the British public suffer in one way or another from Irritable Bowel Syndrome… one in five!

Another survey says that more than a million have had their bowel removed (the main sufferers are those with cancer, Crohn’s and colitis). Many sufferers have ten minutes notice that they need a toilet.

A manager interviewed about the problem on the Elizabeth Line commented that because no one will travel more than a few stops, there is not a problem.

I disagree. If you live in east London, and want to go to the many places that you can get to via the Elizabeth Line from (say) Slough or Reading, for the sake of five or ten minutes you’re not going to lug any luggage from one train to another, with no guarantee that you will get a seat.

So please, if you see a person in a bit of a panic mode near the train doors or toilet doors, give them a bit of thought. Bill Shepherd, St Albans