In message of Thu, 22 Jan
2009 18:06:50 in uk.transport.london, Peter Lawrence
writes
On Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:51:26 +0000, Paul G
wrote:

In message , Peter Lawrence
writes
I question the tolets at Barking - I recall that the only ones were
in the burger bar and strictly for their customers only.

There are public toilet available behind the barriers open until 10pm
daily (they were opened around 2 years ago). DFM.

Thankyou. On reflection it is probably three years since I was there!

Thanks for the information on Barking.
I was out in Metroland, yesterday.
Uxbridge toilets are closed during refurbishment.
Ickenham FM toilets are locked 247 outside the gateline, but available
on customer request. Some parts of the network seem to think
vandalism/anti-social behaviour is a reason for permanent service
closure.
--
Walter Briscoe

On 23 Jan, 07:06, Walter Briscoe wrote:

(snip)

I was out in Metroland, yesterday.
Uxbridge toilets are closed during refurbishment.
Ickenham FM toilets are locked 247 outside the gateline, but available
on customer request. Some parts of the network seem to think
vandalism/anti-social behaviour is a reason for permanent service
closure.


There's a daft arrangement at South Harrow station (which is broadly
speaking Metroland) - there's an LU public toilet within the station
building but it's entered from outside i.e. from the street (actually
next to the mini-bus station there). Entry requires a special token,
which can be obtained from the ticket office for I think 20p. The
problem being that the ticket office is one of those that is closed in
the middle of the day - when I was there, despite the ticket office
technically being closed an old boy had successfully coaxed whoever
was in the office to make an exception and sell him and and his
grandson tickets, so I quickly jumped in after they'd finished and
extracted a token from them. But a rather less than ideal situation,
it must be said. The token system presumably exists to stop people
from trying to break into the token receptacle that's outside next to
the toilet doors - if it was filled with money then it would obviously
be a rather more attractive target.

In message , Walter Briscoe
writes
In message of Thu, 22 Jan
2009 18:06:50 in uk.transport.london, Peter Lawrence
writes
On Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:51:26 +0000, Paul G
wrote:

In message , Peter Lawrence
writes
I question the tolets at Barking - I recall that the only ones were
in the burger bar and strictly for their customers only.

There are public toilet available behind the barriers open until 10pm
daily (they were opened around 2 years ago). DFM.

Thankyou. On reflection it is probably three years since I was there!

Thanks for the information on Barking.
I was out in Metroland, yesterday.
Uxbridge toilets are closed during refurbishment.
Ickenham FM toilets are locked 247 outside the gateline, but available
on customer request. Some parts of the network seem to think
vandalism/anti-social behaviour is a reason for permanent service
closure.

That seems to happen at Perivale.

On the other hand, at Harrow on the Hill and Alperton I've found very
helpful staff, even when loos were closed. In fact, those two places
stick in my mind as where I've received "service with a smile" from LU
staff.

Oh add West Ruislip to that, too. And North Ealing. At various times
over the years staff have opened toilets there just for me/us. The one
at North Ealing actually let me into the ladies' loo, once!

--
Ian Jelf, MITG
Birmingham, UK

Registered Blue Badge Tourist Guide for London and the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk

Ian Jelf wrote:

In message , Walter Briscoe
writes

Ickenham FM toilets are locked 247 outside the gateline, but
available on customer request. Some parts of the network seem to
think vandalism/anti-social behaviour is a reason for permanent
service closure.

That seems to happen at Perivale.

On the other hand, at Harrow on the Hill and Alperton I've found very
helpful staff, even when loos were closed. In fact, those two places
stick in my mind as where I've received "service with a smile" from LU
staff.

Oh add West Ruislip to that, too. And North Ealing. At various
times over the years staff have opened toilets there just for me/us.
The one at North Ealing actually let me into the ladies' loo, once!

The toilets at Bank are closed at weekends. And they're run by the
council so TfL staff can't even open them for you.

In message , solar penguin
writes

Ian Jelf wrote:

In message , Walter Briscoe
writes

Ickenham FM toilets are locked 247 outside the gateline, but
available on customer request. Some parts of the network seem to
think vandalism/anti-social behaviour is a reason for permanent
service closure.

That seems to happen at Perivale.

On the other hand, at Harrow on the Hill and Alperton I've found very
helpful staff, even when loos were closed. In fact, those two places
stick in my mind as where I've received "service with a smile" from LU
staff.

Oh add West Ruislip to that, too. And North Ealing. At various
times over the years staff have opened toilets there just for me/us.
The one at North Ealing actually let me into the ladies' loo, once!

The toilets at Bank are closed at weekends. And they're run by the
council so TfL staff can't even open them for you.

Interestingly, that wasn't always the case. I clearly remember taking
a group there to use them one Sunday, although this could have been up
to 5 years ago.

Usually in The City, things move in the other direction these days, with
a trend towards more being open on Sundays than away from it.
--
Ian Jelf, MITG
Birmingham, UK

Registered Blue Badge Tourist Guide for London and the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk

In message of Sat, 24 Jan 2009
23:06:49 in uk.transport.london, solar penguin
writes

Ian Jelf wrote:

In message , Walter Briscoe
writes

Ickenham FM toilets are locked 247 outside the gateline, but
available on customer request. Some parts of the network seem to
think vandalism/anti-social behaviour is a reason for permanent
service closure.

That seems to happen at Perivale.

On the other hand, at Harrow on the Hill and Alperton I've found very
helpful staff, even when loos were closed. In fact, those two places
stick in my mind as where I've received "service with a smile" from LU
staff.

Oh add West Ruislip to that, too. And North Ealing. At various
times over the years staff have opened toilets there just for me/us.
The one at North Ealing actually let me into the ladies' loo, once!

The toilets at Bank are closed at weekends. And they're run by the
council so TfL staff can't even open them for you.

The City of London is unlikely to be impressed by being described as
"the council".
My record says "outside gateline, by exit 3, 08.00-18.15 M-F,
10.00-16.00 S&S".
The map marks Bank with a dagger symbol for which the key says: "Toilet
not managed by London Underground. You may be charged for using the
facilities. Ask staff for information."

The toilets at Bank are free. It did - I can't say it does - have the
problem that the opening hours are only shown when open. Westminster's
Piccadilly Circus facilities have the same problem. The Monument
facilities - underground at the bottom of Gracechurch Street - are not
and should be daggered as the City runs them, too. I did not flag such
problems with the map in my email of 12 January for which I am bursting
for a reply.

Alternatives include Wetherspoon's The Green Man, No. 1 Poultry which is
open Mon–Fri 7.30am–midnight; Sat/Sun closed and Liverpool Street "D
with RADAR in mainline station next to platform 10; FM downstairs
opposite platform 10 0.30. FM McDonalds on left outside station after
going up escalator opposite platform 3."

I am conscious that my information is biased and incomplete. e.g. I do
not know when toilets are open at Liverpool Street. It has never been an
issue for me.

I recommend a RADAR key for anyone p***ing (travelling) around London.
They can be bought by anyone and VAT free by anyone with a disability
for Customs purposes - wider than the Freedom Pass criteria. I bought
mine from http://www.radar.org.uk/radarwebsite/tabid/41/default.aspx.
I paid 3.50 + VAT as I did not realise my disability allowed exemption.
I would not recommend the toilet location book at a tenner as its
addresses do not include post codes. Service is slow. It is possible to
buy cheaper at EBay, etc. but why bother for such a small sum which, I
trust, contributes to extending the scheme.

Can I try the group with a supplementary question?
I chased TfL when I found that some of its accessible toilets had locks
which are not RADAR-enabled. I was told they would be corrected before
2009.

Affected stations:

Harrow & Wealdstone in ticket hall on right; no RADAR; next to platform 1 northbound.
Hounslow East inside gateline on right, no RADAR or generic access
Kilburn D platform 2 southbound no RADAR; FM on right in ticket hall 0.20 slot access
Pinner No RADAR; all on platform 2 southbound
Stratford BDFM by escalator next to LO platform 2 - no RADAR; D with RADAR by escalator next to LO platform 1
and
Willesden Green Before gateline in ticket hall no RADAR

My information on Stratford is obsolete since LO platforms moved.

The question is: are all the wheelchair-accessible toilets at those
stations freely accessible or accessible with a RADAR key?
A bonus will point out the toilets are in places which are not,
themselves, wheelchair accessible.
--
Walter Briscoe

Walter Briscoe wrote:


The City of London is unlikely to be impressed by being described as
"the council".
My record says "outside gateline, by exit 3, 08.00-18.15 M-F,
10.00-16.00 S&S".

Ok. Thanks. I've only ever tried to use them before 10am on weekends,
and didn't know they opened later.

On 25 Jan, 10:12, Walter Briscoe wrote:
In message of Sat, 24 Jan 2009
23:06:49 in uk.transport.london, solar penguin
writes





Ian Jelf wrote:

In message , Walter Briscoe
writes

Ickenham FM toilets are locked 247 outside the gateline, but
available on customer request. Some parts of the network seem to
think vandalism/anti-social behaviour is a reason for permanent
service closure.

That seems to happen at Perivale.

On the other hand, at Harrow on the Hill and Alperton I've found very
helpful staff, even when loos were closed. * In fact, those two places
stick in my mind as where I've received "service with a smile" from LU
staff.

Oh add West Ruislip to that, too. * And North Ealing. * At various
times over the years staff have opened toilets there just for me/us.
The one at North Ealing actually let me into the ladies' loo, once!

The toilets at Bank are closed at weekends. *And they're run by the
council so TfL staff can't even open them for you.

The City of London is unlikely to be impressed by being described as
"the council".
My record says "outside gateline, by exit 3, 08.00-18.15 M-F,
10.00-16.00 S&S".
The map marks Bank with a dagger symbol for which the key says: "Toilet
not managed by London Underground. You may be charged for using the
facilities. Ask staff for information."

The toilets at Bank are free. It did - I can't say it does - have the
problem that the opening hours are only shown when open. Westminster's
Piccadilly Circus facilities have the same problem. The Monument
facilities - underground at the bottom of Gracechurch Street - are not
and should be daggered as the City runs them, too.

The toilets near Monument station (underground in the island at the
junction of Eastcheap, King William Street and Gracechurch Street) are
free, and open daytime 7 days a week (they close at an early 3pm Mon-
Fri and at 5pm Sat and Sun). I work nearby and they're clean and tidy
- but down a steep flight of steps.

There is a fancy-looking new disabled toilet (if you'll pardon the
expression) directly behind the Monument itself, close to the Fish
Street Hill exit of the station, which I think is RADAR keyholders
only, though I don't have such a key and so haven't been able to
investigate it.

Details of City of London Corporation toilets he
http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corpo...ic_toilets.htm

They all seem to be open Sat and Sun daytime. They all seem to be free
(except for the automated "pods" which cost 20p)

PaulO

On 25 Jan, 10:12, Walter Briscoe wrote:
In message of Sat, 24 Jan 2009
23:06:49 in uk.transport.london, solar penguin
writes

(snip)

The toilets at Bank are closed at weekends. *And they're run by the
council so TfL staff can't even open them for you.

The City of London is unlikely to be impressed by being described as
"the council".

Ha ha, no indeed they wouldn't be! But that's sort-of what they are of
course (... I did say sort-of!).

[...]
I recommend a RADAR key for anyone p***ing (travelling) around London.
They can be bought by anyone and VAT free by anyone with a disability
for Customs purposes - wider than the Freedom Pass criteria. I bought
mine from http://www.radar.org.uk/radarwebsite/tabid/41/default.aspx.
I paid 3.50 + VAT as I did not realise my disability allowed exemption.
I would not recommend the toilet location book at a tenner as its
addresses do not include post codes. Service is slow. It is possible to
buy cheaper at EBay, etc. but why bother for such a small sum which, I
trust, contributes to extending the scheme.


I've come across this beforehand and pondered buying one myself.
However I have wondered whether it's a good idea letting anyone get
hold of such a key, disability or no-disability (FSVO 'disability', in
which I suppose I'd include diabetics for these purposes at least).
I'd think there might be a danger of the whole scheme being somewhat
undermined if lots of people without a disability (such as myself) get
hold of and use these keys to access the specially provided toilets.

[...]
My information on Stratford is obsolete since LO platforms moved.
[...]


Aha, but they haven't moved! I don't think this has actually been
mentioned yet either on here or on uk.railway - anyway the scheduled
move to the new platforms never took place over the Christmas/ New
Year period so NLL trains are still running in and out of the low-
level platforms.

See the following thread on the District Dave forums, particularly the
post from 'routemasterkeith' on this second page and then the posts
which follow on from it:
http://districtdave.proboards39.com/...ad=9707&page=2

Also see this entry on this blog belonging to 'mackenzieblu', which
has a bit more information about the Stratford situation as the author
managed to speak to Ian Brown of TfL London Rail at the opening of
Woolwich Arsenal DLR:
http://mackenzieblu.blogspot.com/200...h-arsenal.html

Regarding toilets at Stratford - until recently they were definitely
open and were situated within the fare-paid area on the concourse next
to the low-level NLL platforms, and for all I know they still are open
- though I can imagine that they might well get closed when work
starts on converting the low-level platforms and alignment over to DLR
operation (which is what you seem to suggest). There's an access
system which entails one having to pay 20p to open the main door to
the toilets (though I remember it not always being in use), but
obviously if someone's coming out or someone else is already paying to
get in then if you're quick you can get in without paying before the
door slams shut!


P.S. Perhaps I shall start a thread about the delayed move of the NLL
platforms at Stratford.