SECURE RESTROOMS ON TRANSPORT TRAILERS
A bizarre incident a few months ago along a Wisconsin expressway underscores the importance of load securement for portable restroom operators. A dramatic Wisconsin Department of Transportation video showed seven units sliding off the back of a transport trailer in the early morning hours, sending commuter traffic swerving wildly to avoid colliding with the restrooms.
In the end, all but one of the errant restrooms was smashed to bits, damaging four cars and obviously making for a bad day for the restroom company driver. It’s not clear to me why, but news accounts said the driver was not cited in the incident. But even without a ticket, this failure to tie down restrooms was certainly going to involve the PRO’s insurance company and cost the provider dearly down the line in increased premiums.
If you Google port-a-potty crash, I’m sure the first link to pop up will be the traffic video that shows the units hitting the pavement still standing tall and being hit by surprised motorists.
“I was so shook. I was beyond shook. I was like, ‘Is that a port-a-potty?’ Where did it even come from? Did they set it there? Because it was standing but rolling. So I was, like, there is no way this is possible,” driver Alex Hilario recalled to a TV news reporter.
Luckily, nobody was hurt in the incident. Restrooms can be replaced; not so for the motoring public.
So before your next load of restrooms heads out for special event service, take some time to make sure your trailer and tow vehicle are operating safely. Here are few quick tips for transporting restrooms safely:
1. Check the condition of your straps, ratchets or bars used to secure restrooms and skids to the frame of your trailer. Straps are significant wear items you should put on a regular replacement schedule. Look for fraying material or worn-out mechanicals on the ratchets.
2. Check the trailer frequently for wear and tear. Make sure the frame is welded securely, tires are in good shape, there are no loose fenders or other metal parts that could break away over bumpy roads.
3. Check your ball and hitch and security chains every time you hook up the trailer. Do a walk-around the truck and trailer and ensure all lighting works correctly.
4. Don’t rely on one worker’s observations. Have a second member of your team inspect the truck and trailer and unit security before anyone leaves the yard.
ALBANY, OREGON, PUNTS ON PORTABLE RESTROOM RESTRICTIONS
A few months ago, I told you about a church in Albany, Oregon, that was having trouble renewing a temporary permit to provide a portable restroom to serve homeless people in the area. The restroom was placed near Albany First Christian Church for a year and was prompting complaints from neighbors who didn’t want to look at it. Consequently officials were looking for ways to restrict long-term use of portable restrooms.
Several months later, the issue remains unresolved. A proposal was brought forward to limit restroom placements to 90 days with an option to renew for another 90 days. Two local PROs appeared before the City Council to complain that the permitting process is expensive and difficult to keep up with. You can imagine the confusion more regulations and shorter timeframes for placing restrooms would cause among restroom customers.
The city administrator’s answer was that any complexity of new rules wouldn’t be the problem of the restroom companies, but something the customers would have to deal with. You know better than that. Any problem encountered by a customer comes firmly back to the provider to research and explain to the customer. When someone complains about a restroom being on a construction site past the allowable 90 days, for instance, the first call will go to the number on the restroom itself. That’s you, the PRO ity leaders are still grappling with the issue of limits on temporary placement of restrooms. I’ll agree with the response of one city councilor, Ray Kopcznski, when he said the new rules were like using “a sledgehammer to swat a fly.”
On behalf of PROs everywhere, I’ll say one thing for certain: Try to choose less regulation over more regulation. If a group like the church sees a need for portable sanitation in the community, let them provide it on an uninterrupted basis and end the contract when the problem goes away. They are providing a necessary service and not placing the cost on the backs of the taxpayers.
And always err on the side of having more restroom availability than less. Our city centers, particularly, are facing an extreme shortage in bathroom facilities, and PROs offer a cost-effective solution to the problem. Let them do their jobs.
TOO MUCH VANDALISM … SO DON’T USE PORTABLE RESTROOMS?
Frustrated by portable restroom vandalism, Mount Union Borough Council members in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, said the solution might be no longer providing restrooms in parks. The Huntingdon Daily News reported that council member Alec Brindle was fed up with extra charges for restroom damage and cleanup and suggested pulling the units.
“Someone’s been going around the parks, must think it’s funny and is tipping all the port-a-potties over. I can drive by four out of seven nights a week and it’s tipped over,” he said. “Our officers can’t be at our parks 24/7. I don’t foresee it being a good idea to pay for facilities at the playground. It’s disgusting.”
As all PROs know, vandalism is an expensive and ever-growing problem. Tip-overs, fires and stolen units are regularly reported in communities large and small. That doesn’t mean municipalities should stop providing restrooms when and where they are needed. I don’t have a surefire solution to this issue that plagues restroom contractors, but we can all work together — PROs and their customers — to reduce the financial impact of vandalism.
It’s time PROs bring their expertise to the table in places like Mount Union. You know a lot about safe and secure placement of restrooms, and your municipal customers can and should take advantage of your knowledge. Work with local boards and law enforcement and suggest ways to better place and patrol your units to discourage vandals. Streamline insurance agreements and cleanup processes to reduce costs and lingering impacts of vandalism in your community.
Vandalism is one of the biggest threats to your profitability. Speak up and take charge of the issue that is causing so much frustration for your customers. And doggedly pursue charges and convictions when vandals are identified to send a message that this will not be tolerated.
HOURLY POOL RENTALS ARE A PORTABLE SANITATION OPPORTUNITY
You can use Airbnb to rent out your house. And Turo to rent your wheels for the day. And a new online service for backyard pool rentals, swimply.com, is creating another interesting market niche for portable restroom operators.
The website newsbreak.com wrote about a Pennsylvania woman who was looking to earn a few extra bucks so she decided to rent out her swimming pool by the hour. Groups of up to 10 adults could use the pool for $100 per hour and included in that fee was use of a portable restroom, apparently to keep visitors from dripping all over the floors in her house on the way to the bathroom.
Pool rentals follow a growing trend of homeowners leasing out bedrooms, or whole houses to visitors to offer an alternative to hotels and motels. They are also renting out their cars by the hour or day as an option to costly auto rental businesses. Starting last summer, visitors to swimply.com could search for nearby pools.
If this trend takes off like Airbnb, restroom providers could start monitoring the website for potential summer-long customers up north or perhaps 12-month service in the warm southern regions.
