Toilet cuts on rail route — a ‘disgrace’

A rail franchise has been branded a “disgrace” by the RMT transport union, after it discovered that refurbished trains on Southern’s Portsmouth to Brighton service will have no toilet facilities, so extra seats can be fitted.

Bob Crow, general secretary of the RMT, said the failure by Southern to treat staff and passengers with basic respect and dignity by providing toilet facilities risks turning carriages into “stinking cattle trucks”, creating appalling conditions for passengers and staff alike.

The independent watchdog Passenger Focus said that the decision was a blow to the elderly, as well as those with medical conditions and passengers travelling with children.

A survey of unionised workplaces published in the May issue of Workplace Report, the sister publication of Labour Research, found disturbing evidence of inadequate toilet facilities and restrictive toilet break rules.