Trivia: Worst designed train toilets

[Peter0124]

Inspired to post this whilst travelling on a Class 730.

I have to say the (accessible) toilets on these units are poorly designed, with the sink being too small and the water hole being at the very edge rather than in the middle of it, meaning the floor ends up soaked when the train begins moving or slowing down.

Also what is it with hand-detection hand dryers? Half the time they don't even turn on when you put your hand under! Wouldn't it be better to have a button that switches it on for say 30 seconds?

Are there any other train toilets on the network which are poorly designed or difficult to use? The Pendolinos are the best in my opinion, however the hand-dryer still constantly turns on and off when hands are still underneath.

 

[D6130]

The refurbished ScotRail class 156 units. The location of the double sliding doors makes it quite difficult to manoeuvre a wheelchair in and out. Once you get inside, there's plenty of room for manoeuvre though.

 

[Kite159]

The sinks on the Flirts I found are a bit poorly designed in the water shuts off straight away after you move your hand from the sensor, rather than remaining on for a few seconds to allow hands to be washed.

Special mention to some of the retro-fit toilet units on 150s where the toilet itself doesn't give much legroom when you are sitting down

 

[Sakuradori]

Class 222 toilets have a full floor to ceiling mirror angled directly at yourself while you sit. Great if you want to inspect your posture.

 

[RUK]

I find the same problem with the FLIRTs’ toilets - the water barely stays on.

Class 700s’ non-accessible toilet’s doors are roller doors, which roll forward and back and bang open and shut noisily when not in use, whenever the train accelerates or brakes.

 

[FrodshamJnct]

Has to be TFW going all in on their Standard Premium offer only for it to be deemed unviable as not PRM compliant. It was a shambles - both in design and their subsequent comms around it.

 

[Russel]

Inspired to post this whilst travelling on a Class 730.

I have to say the (accessible) toilets on these units are poorly designed, with the sink being too small and the water hole being at the very edge rather than in the middle of it, meaning the floor ends up soaked when the train begins moving or slowing down.

On the 730's, the small toilet is no better, you can't get into a comfortable position to use the sink resulting in water covering your arms...

 

[Merle Haggard]

I've posted about the very poor 730 toilet washbasin water on the Forum before - if you hold your hands under the outlet inevitably water runs along your hands and onto the floor, however hard you try to stop it.

I travelled a couple of times on Cambridge - Kings Cross emu (not sure of the class) They have three widely space push buttons - soap, water, dryer. (then last from memory, not sure) One might expect that, when one presses the 'soap' button your other hand should be positioned underneath the button to catch the soap - but no. it emerges from underneath the water button. Wrong! In reverse with the water. I suppose you could get used to it with practice.

It's an interesting reflection on train designers, constructors and testers. With the 730s presumably they all thought 'The floor gets wet, but, apart from that irrelevant detail, i've done a brilliant job'. .

Cl 350 hand dryers cut off in neutral sections (fair enough, can't waste battery power) but they do seem to take a long time to re-start.

 

[rmHawk765]

Class 700s’ non-accessible toilet’s doors are roller doors, which roll forward and back and bang open and shut noisily when not in use, whenever the train accelerates or brakes.

*In theory* these are supposed to have some sort of locking mechanism but it is so weak that on most units the doors do indeed just slam about all the time.

 

[Mikey C]

Train hand dryers are reminiscent of the hand dryers in public toilets 20 years ago, before the newer generation of way more powerful ones (like the Dysons) appeared...

 

[rmHawk765]

Train hand dryers are reminiscent of the hand dryers in public toilets 20 years ago, before the newer generation of way more powerful ones (like the Dysons) appeared...

I do not even bother when I see (or use, because you can't really know beforehand on a train) one of those ancient dryers.

The Dyson Airblade design (and all the copies) is the best (or paper towels, anyone?), but there is no reason you can't fit something smaller but still usable in a train. The main issues you can have with a dryer are that it is too slow, it freezes your hands in the winter, or it just blows all the water onto the floor (or even water off the sink onto you). Trains tend to have 2 out of those 3 problems, and I'd much rather just have some paper towels if a proper design can't be worked out.

Also, foot buttons (as seen on unrefurbished TGV trainsets for instance) are far superior to sensors or buttons. No need to touch a button which has probably been touched at least a good 50 times since the last time it was cleaned, and no need to wave your hands around like an idiot under a broken sensor. For accessible toilets regular buttons can be kept.

 

[eastwestdivide]

Hand dryers on many 158s are beyond feeble.
Very narrow sinks in IET small toilets, hard to get your hands under without touching the back and dripping on the floor when your fingertips are under the sensors.
Sensors that aren't aligned with the symbols for soap, water, air.
Mind you, I also hate the non-train dryers that are both so loud it hurts and also blow drips over your light-coloured trousers, making look like you've "had an accident".

Think I'll hold it in and wait to go behind the nearest tree.

 

[milooo]

Train hand dryers are reminiscent of the hand dryers in public toilets 20 years ago, before the newer generation of way more powerful ones (like the Dysons) appeared...

Speaking about powerful hand dryers... The 387s' (unsure about the others) hand dryers blow water everywhere

 

[31160]

Well for my vote I would say the Caledonian MK5s, now these are trains where most peeps would like a good wash in the morning when you're about to get off at your destination but how your supposed to do that when you can't bend over the sink, all you can do is just get the floor soaking, not much thought used, obviously if you're in any berth this doesn't apply

 

[Merle Haggard]

Train hand dryers are reminiscent of the hand dryers in public toilets 20 years ago, before the newer generation of way more powerful ones (like the Dysons) appeared...

I recollect using a very powerful hand-dryer in a small-type lavatory and it quickly heated the whole lavatory up to oppresive sauna heat before my hands were dry, so that may be a reason they're not usually powerful. I wish I could remember the train type, but I can't. Might have been a refurbished older stock one. .

 

[RUK]

I recollect using a very powerful hand-dryer in a small-type lavatory and it quickly heated the whole lavatory up to oppresive sauna heat before my hands were dry, so that may be a reason they're not usually powerful. I wish I could remember the train type, but I can't. Might have been a refurbished older stock one. .

That’s why the Dyson Airblade type are better - as per the name, the sheet of air jetted out is meant to be a blade which scrapes the water off your hands, rather than the air being warmed - hence they work best if you put in and pull your hands in and out of it as quickly as possible as many times as possible to scrape water off them with each pass, which I see a lot of people don’t seem to get the principle of - some people just stick their hands in there and leave them there, which doesn’t work well with them. The Airblades can get gunky at the bottom where the water ends up, and they can end up not draining the water, though, blowing it to the floor, which wouldn’t be good for a small train toilet - I don’t know if they’re hard to clean out, but they (except the Airblade V, which doesn’t have the cavity, but having the air jet on only 1 side of each hand, doesn’t work as well) do need to have the drain maintained and be cleaned, whereas the traditional type of hand dryer doesn’t have that issue/a drain/internal cavity to clean out. I find the alternative versions such as the Mitsubishi Jet Towel even worse for seeming to get smelly/unhygenic, though. Airblades are fine if maintained, but can get gross if not.

 

[Merle Haggard]

That’s why the Dyson Airblade type are better - as per the name, the sheet of air jetted out is meant to be a blade which scrapes the water off your hands, rather than the air being warmed - hence they work best if you put and pull your hands in and out of it as quickly as possible to scrape water off witch each pass, which I see a lot of people don’t seem to get the principle of - some people just stick their hands in there and leave them there, which doesn’t work well with them. The Airblades can get gunky at the bottom where the water ends up, and they can end up not draining the water, though, blowing it to the floor, which wouldn’t be good for a small train toilet - I don’t know if they’re hard to clean out, but they do need to have the drain maintained and be cleaned, whereas the traditional type of hand dryer doesn’t have that issue/a drain/internal cavity to clean out. I find the alternative versions such as the Mitsubishi Jet Towel even worse for seeming to get smelly/unhygenic, though. Airblades are fine if maintained, but can get gross if not.

That's reminded me of an irritation with cl 350 hand dryers.

You have to get your hand in exactly the right position, and for it to be static for a time period, to persuade the heater to switch on. Move your hand and it switches off. But the whole point of an electric hand dryer is you rub your hands together to make the drying process work! Don't the designers know this ???

May also apply in other classes, but the Pendo ones are great and allow you to move your hands vigorously without cutting out.

 

[fgwrich]

Another vote for the Hitachi designed units. Not only for the aforementioned issues above with the dodgy sensors, water jet, shallow sink design which if you use the sink whilst the train is moving results in the water ending up on the floor, all round cheapness of the plastic walls but also the somewhat irritating door design with its very heavy sliding mechanism, and door handle design which manages to catch splashed water from the sink.

I’ve certainly seen people of all ages struggle with those doors.

Special mention to the original Networker / Turbo design too. Ridiculously narrow door with cr*p hinges, a smooth curved counter design with a rubbish tap that more often that not ends up dribbling the water out, down the wall and straight onto the floor. And a rubbish hand dryer to boot.

 

[yorksrob]

The small toilets on 222's where you don't even have room to open your legs. Too cramped.

 

[Goldfish62]

Inspired to post this whilst travelling on a Class 730.

I have to say the (accessible) toilets on these units are poorly designed, with the sink being too small and the water hole being at the very edge rather than in the middle of it, meaning the floor ends up soaked when the train begins moving or slowing down.

Exactly the same issues on the 701s. The soaked floors give the impression of the toilets being filthy even when they're not.

 

[Mikey C]

I was a GWR 800 on Tuesday (800313) and there was clearly a blockage somewhere, as the sink (in one of the small toilets) wasn't draining properly, splashing water everywhere as the train jolted along...