Who is responsible for maintaining the quality of the place?

The City of Basel’s office of civil engineering operates and maintains 54 conventional and 33 self-cleaning toilets for public use. An additional five mobile public toilets are deployed during the warmer months. The public toilet on Unterer Rheinweg near the Kaserne Basel cultural centre is a self-cleaning facility, which means it is cleaned automatically after each use. The sanitary equipment is washed down with high-pressure water, disinfected and then dried.

Is the place easily accessible?

The toilet is located on the busy Rhine promenade in Kleinbasel. Pedestrians and cyclists pass by here, as do passengers on the Klingental ferry, which arrives and departs here. The toilet block is wheelchair accessible. The doors open sideways at the push of a button. The interior is spacious enough for wheelchair users to move around easily. There is also an outdoor shower, which is used in the warmer months by people who have been swimming in the Rhine.

Is the place distinguished by durable construction and little need for maintenance?

The free-standing cubicle and the fixtures themselves – toilet bowl, grab rails, washbasin – are made of stainless steel. The other parts are also made of rustproof materials such as glass and aluminium. The robust design and construction prevents vandalism. The integrated electronic controls regulate and monitor each use and the subsequent cleaning process fully automatically. High water pressure cleans the toilet in 40 seconds and removes coarse dirt and waste. The cubicle is then ready for the next user.

Is the place economically viable in the long view?

The use of public toilets in Basel has been free of charge since 2017. Until then, users had to pay 50 centimes, which did not cover the costs but was intended to prevent vandalism. Now that the toilets are free, they are used more often, and fewer men urinate on building façades or in the bushes. From the point of view of the city’s inhabitants, the municipal investment in free use is worthwhile because it reduces the stench of urine – especially on warm summer evenings – and thus keeps the wider area around the Rhine promenade clean and economically prosperous.

Is the place socially robust?

Anyone who strolls along the Rhine promenade in the warmer months knows: it is a busy place, full of people. The stretch between the Johanniterbrücke and the Mittlere Brücke is also teeming with cyclists, pedestrians and people on e-scooters. There’s a mix of locals, city dwellers and tourists. It’s a great place to stroll, sit on the riverbank or enjoy a treat at one of the kiosks or restaurants.

Does present-day design improve the quality of the existing?

The free-standing toilet cube is a small infrastructure building – mundane and robust. It stands in a corner of the open space in front of the Kaserne cultural centre. Its gleaming metal surface is made up of individual sheet metal panels. The enclosure has been carefully constructed, and the small cube is recognisable from afar as a public toilet. Form and function fulfil their purpose.

Is the use compatible with ecological principles?

The overuse of the banks of the Rhine in the warmer months, with its negative side effects such as litter and indiscriminate urination, is a challenge. The many paved areas on the banks of the Rhine do not contribute to biodiversity either. Around the Kaserne cultural centre and along the Rhine, however, there are many trees, some of them very old, which are ecologically valuable.

Does the place make people feel at ease?

The Rhine is the city’s blue lifeline. Its banks make up a large part of Basel’s charm and contribute to the city’s quality of life. The section between the Kaserne Basel cultural centre and Wettsteinbrücke, where the fully automatic toilet facility is located, is a popular stretch. The fact that the city has provided several modern, clean and free toilets here is a good decision. They help keep the banks of the Rhine clean.