\nidea of a five-star restroom experience, it does come as a welcome relief 30,000
\nfeet above the ground after two in-flight club sodas. So imagine your surprise
\nwhen, after scrambling over your fellow passengers and down the narrow aisle with
\na full bladder, there’s a flight attendant there with an outstretched hand, not
\nto somehow assist you with your bathroom experience (you’ve been doing it quite
\nwell for years now all by yourself), but to collect the toilet tax. Yep, that’ll
\nbe one euro to use the airplane bathroom if you’re flying Ryanair<\/a>, an Irish
\nairline with routes across Europe and Morocco. No cash on hand? Sorry, you’re
\nSOL—perhaps literally.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The airline, which also announced a “standing room only”
\nsection for its planes last summer to fit more passengers on board, is reducing
\nthe number of toilets on the plane to one to make more room for seats. And,
\nindeed, the eco-savvy set already knows that using the bathroom at the airport
\nis more environmentally friendly than the airplane potty (every flush in the plane’s
\nlavatory uses enough fuel to run a car for six miles, since airplanes use
\npowered vacuums instead of gravity to flush), but coin-op loos? Come on.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Seriously, though, here’s the best part of this <\/p>\n “The whole idea of making people pay for a bodily <\/p>\n Yes, there’s an American Restroom Association and Shy <\/p>\n ——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Like what you see? Sign up to receive The Grist List, our email roundup of pun-usual green news<\/a> just like this, sent out every Friday.<\/p>\n Related Links:<\/strong><\/p>\n Insane posse of climate deniers?<\/a><\/p>\n Wal-Mart stores are littered with wasteful products this month<\/a><\/p>\n Smokers to get their greenbutts in gear with compostable cigarettes<\/a><\/p>\n
\nstory<\/a>:<\/p>\n
\nfunction is crazy. There are easier ways to make an extra euro,” says Steven Soifer, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Social Work and co-founder of the American Restroom Association<\/a> and Shy Bladder Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\nBladder Center. And yes, I’m 8 years old.<\/p>\n