unimaginative2
Senior Member
My thoughts exactly.
|
|
|
My thoughts exactly.
Tuscani, if ya gotta go, don't wait, just go!
42
PS - I'm really looking forward to seeing how the personalization for BIAs etc. will work. Things are looking up!
ShonTron
Moderator
Wow. Astral got the deal! Thanks for the heads up. Local media in California has been negligent in reporting things like this (though there was a small blurb about Monday's TTC fiasco).
The best of the lot. Too bad the lot wasn't better, but I'll live with it.
I'm also thankful that it wasn't Clear Channel.
The best of the lot. Too bad the lot wasn't better, but I'll live with it.
I'm also thankful that it wasn't Clear Channel.
Degnaw
New Member
Do many cities have problems with illegal advertising, or is it just Toronto? If so, is there any precedent for 1. selecting such a company for street furniture and 2. using their illegal signs as leverage against them in the contract?
wyliepoon
Senior Member
National Post (Vancouver Sun) on Vancouver's new public toilets (my emphasis in article)
Link to article
Toilet genius
But don't linger: Automatic door opening in Vancouver's public loo is among the safeguards
Anupreet Sandhu Bhamra
Vancouver Sun
Friday, April 27, 2007
VANCOUVER - With a touch of a button, an automated door slides open for a unique washroom experience.
On the bustling downtown corner of Main Street and Terminal Avenue, right next to a bus stop, the automated washroom provides a relatively peaceful refuge as the SkyTrain roars above and traffic whips by.
It looks slightly futuristic, even industrial. Inside there is an instruction button. Press it and an automated voice tells you what to do.
You don't have to touch the taps to wash your hands; the sensors do the job for you, drying and all.
The washroom, opened earlier this week on one of the busiest intersections of the city, is the latest weapon in Vancouver's attempt to reduce bad behaviour, including incidents of public urination and defecation. It is the first of eight such public facilities to be installed in the downtown area.
"This project will meet one of the goals of Project Civil City which is to decrease [these] nuisance activities," said Grant Woff, an engineer with the City of Vancouver.
To deter drug use and other illicit activities inside the washroom, the manufacturers have built in precautionary measures.
If more than one person steps on the washroom floor, sensors detect the added weight, prevent the door from closing and trigger flashing lights.
"For the first week, we are going to have our staff on site or near the site to make sure there are no problems," said CBS spokesman David Struthers.
"It is the first of its kind in Canada."
The washrooms are provided at no cost to the taxpayer. CBS/JC Decaux recovers its revenue through the advertising on the exterior of the facilities.
The city will also be monitoring the washrooms to see if they are being used for any illicit activities.
"This is a pilot project and there are going to be some challenges, but we are going to monitor," Woff said.
There is also a time limit for users. After 20 minutes, the washroom door automatically slides open, exposing the occupant. The city has plans to reduce that to 12 minutes. Visitors are given a two-minute warning before the door opens.
The cubicle -- 3.6 metres by 2.4 metres -- is also accessible to those in wheelchairs.
The washroom is currently open from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., but beginning May 3 it will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
One of the first individuals to use the new john was suitably impressed.
"It's like going to Mars in a spaceship," said Anthony Righello, a construction worker who has had "nasty" experiences with public toilets. "It is very futuristic, you don't have to push anything, it is very good.
"Business owners wouldn't let you use their restrooms, so this is pretty [good] and it's free," he said.
The washroom also has an emergency button that will connect the occupant to a 911 operator.
The facility got a lot of attention Thursday as people rushed by: inquisitive looks and plenty of stares. One woman even snapped pictures of the washroom on her cellphone.
The toilet has an automated cleaning cycle after every use, which lasts around a minute, during which time the facility is inaccessible. The toilet bowl is lifted, the contents emptied, and the bowl pressure-washed, disinfected and dried. The entire floor goes through the same process -- cleaned, disinfected and dried.
The washrooms are supplied, owned and operated by CBS/JC Decaux, which also provides bus stop shelters, garbage cans, benches and bike racks.
Link to article
Toilet genius
But don't linger: Automatic door opening in Vancouver's public loo is among the safeguards
Anupreet Sandhu Bhamra
Vancouver Sun
Friday, April 27, 2007
VANCOUVER - With a touch of a button, an automated door slides open for a unique washroom experience.
On the bustling downtown corner of Main Street and Terminal Avenue, right next to a bus stop, the automated washroom provides a relatively peaceful refuge as the SkyTrain roars above and traffic whips by.
It looks slightly futuristic, even industrial. Inside there is an instruction button. Press it and an automated voice tells you what to do.
You don't have to touch the taps to wash your hands; the sensors do the job for you, drying and all.
The washroom, opened earlier this week on one of the busiest intersections of the city, is the latest weapon in Vancouver's attempt to reduce bad behaviour, including incidents of public urination and defecation. It is the first of eight such public facilities to be installed in the downtown area.
"This project will meet one of the goals of Project Civil City which is to decrease [these] nuisance activities," said Grant Woff, an engineer with the City of Vancouver.
To deter drug use and other illicit activities inside the washroom, the manufacturers have built in precautionary measures.
If more than one person steps on the washroom floor, sensors detect the added weight, prevent the door from closing and trigger flashing lights.
"For the first week, we are going to have our staff on site or near the site to make sure there are no problems," said CBS spokesman David Struthers.
"It is the first of its kind in Canada."
The washrooms are provided at no cost to the taxpayer. CBS/JC Decaux recovers its revenue through the advertising on the exterior of the facilities.
The city will also be monitoring the washrooms to see if they are being used for any illicit activities.
"This is a pilot project and there are going to be some challenges, but we are going to monitor," Woff said.
There is also a time limit for users. After 20 minutes, the washroom door automatically slides open, exposing the occupant. The city has plans to reduce that to 12 minutes. Visitors are given a two-minute warning before the door opens.
The cubicle -- 3.6 metres by 2.4 metres -- is also accessible to those in wheelchairs.
The washroom is currently open from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., but beginning May 3 it will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
One of the first individuals to use the new john was suitably impressed.
"It's like going to Mars in a spaceship," said Anthony Righello, a construction worker who has had "nasty" experiences with public toilets. "It is very futuristic, you don't have to push anything, it is very good.
"Business owners wouldn't let you use their restrooms, so this is pretty [good] and it's free," he said.
The washroom also has an emergency button that will connect the occupant to a 911 operator.
The facility got a lot of attention Thursday as people rushed by: inquisitive looks and plenty of stares. One woman even snapped pictures of the washroom on her cellphone.
The toilet has an automated cleaning cycle after every use, which lasts around a minute, during which time the facility is inaccessible. The toilet bowl is lifted, the contents emptied, and the bowl pressure-washed, disinfected and dried. The entire floor goes through the same process -- cleaned, disinfected and dried.
The washrooms are supplied, owned and operated by CBS/JC Decaux, which also provides bus stop shelters, garbage cans, benches and bike racks.
ShonTron
Moderator
That looks like the same on I tried yesterday at Fisherman's Wharf yesterday. Actually quite clean and spacious.
- Logging in at a FLW Landmark!
- Logging in at a FLW Landmark!
W. K. Lis
Superstar
Sacramento's old parking meters become bike racks
Instead of scrapping the old parking meter poles, Sacramento simply added a metal circle with a bicycle design on the inside. Instant bicycle rack.
Now that's an idea we could use here. Thinking outside the box (or pole in this case).
http://www.sacbee.com/220/story/759922.html
Instead of scrapping the old parking meter poles, Sacramento simply added a metal circle with a bicycle design on the inside. Instant bicycle rack.
Now that's an idea we could use here. Thinking outside the box (or pole in this case).
http://www.sacbee.com/220/story/759922.html
Skeezix
Senior Member
Instead of scrapping the old parking meter poles, Sacramento simply added a metal circle with a bicycle design on the inside. Instant bicycle rack.
Now that's an idea we could use here. Thinking outside the box (or pole in this case).
http://www.sacbee.com/220/story/759922.html
You're kidding, right? Toronto did do that to its old parking meters quite some time ago.
JasonParis
Moderator
Toronto is in fact the model that other cities have followed. It started when we replaced our old-school parking meters with the modern solar-panelled ones about a decade ago.
cassius
Active Member
Does anyone know what the status of the street furniture project is? Just looking at this thread, it's over a year old now.
299 bloor call control.
Senior Member
The installation of the first new bus shelters and other components of the street furniture program are supposed to occur this year... though I was a little perplexed when the shelter at Queen and Peter was removed, then subsequently replaced a few days later with the same old style shelter (the brown ones). I am still not a big fan of the whole design.. the street-sign style identification is really tacky.
Mystery White Boy
Banned
Ya, the ones that never work.
MetroMan
Senior Member
I wanted to get this in somewhere and this seems like the most appropriate place:
There is consideration going on by Metrolinx to sell transit passes and tickets at parking meters.
Perhaps this should come as part of the street furniture program. This should be a device attached to shelters, WC's and info booths that sells parking passes and transit tickets but also allows for drivers to pay parking tickets and advertises and allows users to to subscribe to the Metropass Discount Plan.
The TTC (and Metrolinx) are preaching to the choir with their ads in subway stations, in streetcars and in subways. Sell it to drivers. These parking meters are the perfect vessel.
There is consideration going on by Metrolinx to sell transit passes and tickets at parking meters.
Perhaps this should come as part of the street furniture program. This should be a device attached to shelters, WC's and info booths that sells parking passes and transit tickets but also allows for drivers to pay parking tickets and advertises and allows users to to subscribe to the Metropass Discount Plan.
The TTC (and Metrolinx) are preaching to the choir with their ads in subway stations, in streetcars and in subways. Sell it to drivers. These parking meters are the perfect vessel.
allabootmatt
Senior Member
We might need a more sophisticated choice of fare media for that to work! It's worth noting that as of this week Montreal is switching to a stored-value smart card. It's staggering that the TTC has dragged its feet so much on this issue, although the funding problem is clear.
299 bloor call control.
Senior Member
allabootmatt -- how so? the parking meters already spit out printed parking tickets, there's nothing to say that it can't spit on printed transit tickets. The technology used for the meters is identical to transit ticket dispensers in many cities without the use of smart cards.
I'm not saying smart cards aren't a good thing, I'd love to see that happen. But in the short term, this is an easy and low-cost solution.
Once PresTO is implemented around the region, I'm sure the TTC will eventually follow suit. You can't have a regional fare card without the biggest regional player.
I'm not saying smart cards aren't a good thing, I'd love to see that happen. But in the short term, this is an easy and low-cost solution.
Once PresTO is implemented around the region, I'm sure the TTC will eventually follow suit. You can't have a regional fare card without the biggest regional player.