DBKL attends to complaints on Automatic Street Toilets

Out of use: A file picture of the toilet in Pudu Sentral station closed for maintenance work.

Source: http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2012/3/20/central/10945976&sec=central (20/3/2012)
Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) said many of the damage to the Automatic Street Toilets (AST) were caused by vandalism and misuse. There are 15 that DBKL are operating at one time. DBKL is working with the suppliers to resolve problems related to the use of the new coins and improving the coin box system. At present the janitors will assist the public with the coin usage.
According to a statement by DBKL, the AST Lot 10 was closed and fenced up since October 2011 until February 2012 for monorail upgrading works by Syarikat Prasarana Nasional Bhd. The fence has been removed but some of the toilets are damaged. DBKL is fixing the problems and work will be finished in two weeks time.
For the AST McDonald’s Bukit Bintang, in February alone, the door and coin box have been damaged four times. The damage have been repaired since Feb 16. Based on their records, only one cubicle was faulty at one time while the rest were operating as normal.
Meanwhile, the AST Pudu Sentral/Puduraya had a damaged door and was closed in February. The door was repaired by the contractor on March 2. As for the AST Jalan Conlay, a vandalised door caused one of the cubicles to be closed for a week. It was repaired on Feb 16.
This statement came in response to the StarMetro article published on March 6, where the ASTs were said to be breaking down due to vandalism and bad management.
The toilets made their first appearance along Bintang Walk, Kuala Lumpur, in 2006, costing RM400,000 each. According to stakeholders living and working in the Bukit Bintang district, the toilets in front of the McDonald’s and Lot 10 have not been functioning or are constantly under maintenance. The same situation was reported regarding the public toilets in Pudu Sentral, Chulan Square behind Pavilion and Hang Tuah Monorail station.