Europe's busiest metro system finally gets its first public toilet

The Moscow Metro has been open for 80 years and comprises 197 stations with a total route length of more than 200 miles. And, as of last week, it now has one public toilet. A single "bio toilet" has been placed on the platform of the Prospekt Mira station and passengers who have valid travel cards can access it at no additional cost. The shiny new facility (and, after less than a week, we hope it's still shiny-ish) has sensors that will sound if a passenger leaves his or her belongings behind and an alarm that goes off if someone's been occupying the stall for more than 15 minutes.

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Vladimir Priorov, who runs a website dedicated to public toilets (a phrase that no one expected to read today), told Russian news outlets that Metro officials have been reluctant to install toilets in the platforms because they were concerned that "they would violate sanitation standards in the Metro." This is perhaps why this particular model of toilet was chosen: it is one of the most environmentally-friendly styles available.

Ivan Ostashko, the Head of Communications for the Moscow Metro, told the BBC:

"It's a self-contained unit that doesn't need connection to sewage or water mains. We'll study the results of this trial and decide whether to install toilets at other stations."

The Moscow Metro is the busiest Metro system in Europe, carrying more than 7 million passengers every day. That exceeds the 5.5 million daily riders on the New York City subway or the 4.5 million who travel on London's Underground.

In other words, get in line.