Ottawa’s lack of public washrooms can be problematic if you gotta go while you’re on the go, but the recent development of toilet-finder apps hopes to flush that problem away.
Three private app developers have used data collected by the City of Ottawa on public washrooms and as a result eliminated the need for a publicly funded city app, which was being discussed. This data includes where the washroom is located, what its hours are and how accessible it is on a rating scale of zero to three.
Robert Giggey, the municipal program manager responsible for the development of the city’s OpenData information on the public washrooms, says because of these three apps and the interest of many other developers, it isn’t warranted for the city to develop its own app.
“We could do some more outreach and I’m sure over time more and more services will pick it up,” he says.
One of the apps, titled “ottpee,” is specific to Ottawa and was created by city hall watchdog Kevin O’Donnell. He says his reason for creating the app was to show how easy it is for third-party developers to use the accessible city data.
He wants the city to better promote third-party development of the data they have on their OpenData portal.
He says his app takes the information directly from the city database, so if the city makes a change to any of the information, it will automatically be updated on ottpee.
The app is currently in the form of a mobile-friendly website and is not downloadable, but O’Donnell says he is open to someone taking that step with the app.
“Bathroom Scout” and “Toilet Finder,” two Europe-based apps with Apple and Android versions, have also added Ottawa’s public washroom data to their already existing worldwide databases.
Joan Kuyek, the chair of the Gotta Go! campaign for easily accessible public toilets in Ottawa, says there are a few things that need to be improved with the information that has been gathered and notes that the accessibility data and rating scale is confusing and incomplete.
Kuyek says the data collected gave GottaGo! the information they needed to show how few open washrooms there actually are in the city.
“In the whole region, there are 190,” Kuyek says. “That’s pretty pathetic.”
The high-profile campaign has been pushing for more public toilets in the past few years, most recently in the new LRT stations. Another place that is still of concern is Dundonald Park in Centretown.
Kuyek says the park is one of the major public washroom “deserts” in Ottawa. The Beer Store and a Tim Hortons have recently opened in the area and Kuyek says she is interested to see how this impacts the push for a public toilet in the area.
“I don’t know how Tim Hortons and The Beer Store are going to feel when there are 50 people in the park all wanting to use the toilets,” she says. “Maybe they’ll be willing to pay for a toilet in the park by the end of the summer.”
The next step for the city is to take in the feedback given by the public as well as GottaGo! and make the necessary improvements, Giggey says.
Kuyek says Carleton University master of social work students are also assessing 100 of the city’s public washrooms and compiling a report to be given to the campaign, which will then be sent to the city to include in its data.
She says the city has come a long way in terms of improving pubic washrooms, but there is still work to be done.
“I think there has been a change in the attitude of the city. They now see this as something they want to be proud of and they want to be excited about,” she says. “Ottawa has a chance to be a world-class city when it comes to public toilet provision.”