Here's a riddle: if you're Russian when you seek a bathroom and Finnish when you leave the bathroom, what are you while you're using the bathroom? The answer: European!
Sorry, we simply couldn't resist that old "you're a-peein'" joke with this invention, a self-cleaning urinal station devised by a Dutch company to combat the problem of men urinating in public.
The Urilift is a cylindrical, stainless steel structure of three urinals that rises from underground with a hydraulic lift. The funnel-like urinals are at the center of the column, recessed so men can step into the structure for some modicum of privacy. Each stall is wired for an overhead light. The roof of the structure is rugged and designed to blend with the sidewalk when the Urilift is not in service.
According to the manufacturer and the testimonials on the company web site, a local barkeeper is often entrusted with the remote control to activate the nearby unit in the late evening safely, without startling or injuring passersby as it rises from underground. Public employees reverse the process in the early morning hours. As the all-stainless Urilift retracts downward, halving its height by collapsing like a telescope at the midpoint, it is subjected to a sanitizing spray wash beneath the sidewalk, which also drains to the city's sanitary sewers.
Urilift International BV, a Dutch company, owns the patents on a product line of public urinals and toilets that have gained popularity in a number of towns in Europe. Addressing what it calls the "persistent phenomenon of indiscriminate urination by men which plagues many entertainment districts and local councils," Urilift International introduced its semi-permanent public urinal nearly a decade ago.
Although nuisance urination is primarily a male transgression, the company nevertheless acknowledged that women deserve hygienic public facilities as well, and introduced the UriLady to the marketplace. The UriLady version of a semi-permanent public facility features a single toilet with a seat that lifts automatically when not in use and, of course, a door that locks. This toilet is known as the UriGenic toilet pan, and resembles a wok. Because the seat lifts upright when not in use, accidental splashing by a male occupant is not an issue.
The most recent introduction from Urilift International, however, is the UriVisible urinal station. The UriVisible has the same outward appearance as the Urilift, but because it is permanently mounted above ground, the self-cleaning feature had to be adapted. The UriVisible has detergent and deodorizing scent mixed in water that is released to cascade down its walls and drain into the floor drain. In practicality, it is frequently installed in a location that can be screened somewhat from view. The manufacturer notes that the choice of the UriVisible over the Urilift is most often dictated by the need for an ever-present urinal and where its installation would not meet with objections.
People who have ventured opinions on the pop-up urinals note that it seems a reasonable solution to old European cities and towns with too few bathrooms and too much beer.
Hey, that reminds us of another old one: A man walks into a bar... hmmm, that's gotta hurt.
