Pop-up urinal makes Perth debut

Public urination on the streets of Northbridge has been given the thumbs up with one big caveat — you have to do it at just the right time and place.

After years of talk and planning a $175,000 pop-up urinal has been installed on James Street near Russell Square.

It is believed to be the first of its kind in Australia, although they are widely used in Europe.

The self-cleaning urinal, which can be used by three men at a time, is controlled by a remote and pops up Friday and Saturday nights. In the morning it retracts back into the footpath.

It was installed just over a week ago and if successful it is understood the City of Perth could consider putting pop-up urinals in other locations in the city.

Perth Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi told Channel 7’s Sunrise she believed it would get “a lot of use”.

“It’s just not appropriate to slip into a laneway or hideaway and do a wee under a tree these days,” she said. “We’ve got to consider everyone else and the hygiene of the city.”

She joked she would have to be “pretty desperate” to use it.

The fine for public urination in WA is $500.

Perth Council has been talking about installing pop-up urinals since 2012 and it is not alone.

Other Australian councils, including the City of Sydney, have been looking at installing similar retractable urinals in entertainment precincts.

Part of the appeal of the retractable toilet is that unlike permanent public toilets they are not a focus for antisocial behaviour, including vandalism, during the day.

According to Urilift, the company that makes the urinals, the semi-permanent fixture can be moved if required. It claims the structure is vandalism proof and safer to use than conventional public toilets, which cannot always be installed in such high-traffic areas.