THE number of women’s toilets in public places needs to be increased, according to Connie Tan Hooi Peng (PH-Seri Delima).
During her address at the State Legislative Assembly sitting, she said attention should be given to the ratio of male to female toilets.
Although the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) approved the Malaysian Standard Toilet’s design criteria for public toilets, which mandates a ratio of 1:1.3 (meaning the provision of women’s toilets must exceed men’s toilets by 30 per cent) in 2019, Tan stated that, based on her observations, this ruling has not been enforced.
“For example, I understand that the number of female toilets in Gurney Bay is the same as the number of male toilets.
“In my opinion, the problem of a lack of toilets for women is not new. We often see that the waiting time to use the women’s toilet is longer, especially in public buildings such as airports and shopping complexes.
“Therefore, to shorten the waiting time, the number of women’s toilets in public places needs to be increased.
“The toilet standards should be strictly enforced by MBPP. In busy facilities such as airports and shopping complexes, the ratio can be increased to 1:2. This means if there are three men’s toilets, then there should be six women’s toilets, as suggested by the International Building Code,” Tan explained.
She expressed her hope that this consideration would be taken into account during the upcoming Penang International Airport expansion project.
“The airport is the main image of a city, and it is time for that expansion,” she said.
Tan reiterated her call for the authorities to closely monitor the bypass road project from Air Itam to Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway (known as Package 2).
She claimed that a recent rock blasting incident had resulted in the damage of nearby condominiums and nearly crushed a car. While there were no injuries, she said the safety of residents cannot be compromised.
Tan also brought up the issues of floods and noise disturbances that had inconvenienced the residents.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Law Suun Ting