All hail D.C.'s robot toilets
The public restroom you didn't know you wanted.
Let’s start with one truth: No one ever asked for a “smart” bathroom. But D.C. has six of them, and they’re proving to be pretty popular – if a bathroom could ever be considered, you know, popular.
“Allow me to sing the praises of a robot toilet,” hailed one user on X, before singing its praises. "Whatever had to happen to make this toilet available, I'm grateful!"
It’s been a year since D.C. installed the futuristic public restrooms as part of a pilot program aimed at addressing the uncomfortable reality that if you’re on the go in the city, there’s often not many public places where you can go.
The restrooms come from Throne, a D.C.-born tech startup that produces pre-made portable bathrooms that function like if the Jetsons reimagined a port-a-potty. To get into one of the blue boxes, you either use the Throne app or scan a QR code; the door slides open and you’re given 10 minutes to do your business and clean up. There's running water, and a changing table for babies. On the way out, you’re asked to rate the bathroom’s state, from “Sparking Clean” to “Needs Urgent Attention!” (A roving crew of Throne workers tend to the restrooms.)
The six restrooms have been used over 63,000 times since they were installed just over a year ago, according to Throne. The facility outside D.C. Superior Court led with 18,832 uses, followed by Dupont Circle (14,607), Alethia Tanner Park in Northeast (10,704), the Eastern Market Metro (10,320), the Columbia Heights Civic Plaza (6,033), and Oxon Run Park (2,062). The company says that in the last year there have only been five instances of vandalism (mostly graffiti) and no calls for police.
How does the internet feel about the internet of bathrooms? "I piss here all the time, it fucking rules,” offered one Reddit commenter. Said another: "I expected a slight step up from a port-a-potty, but it was actually kinda nice. I liked the no-touch aspects inside, the jungle print on the interior and it smelled okay." I tried the Dupont Circle Throne on Wednesday evening, and can verify: they do have jungle-themed decoration on the inside. (And it was pretty clean, too.)
There are criticisms, of course, primarily that accessing the Throne restrooms requires a phone. But the company says that even those with a non-smart phone can use them by simply texting the number on the outside of the restroom. They’ve also been working with city social services agencies to distribute tap cards for people who don’t have a phone; 17% of users at the Columbia Heights Throne have used the cards, far above the 3% average across all six locations. Throne does collect some of your data (phone number and location, not what you did in there), but says it doesn’t use it for nefarious purposes.
Ward 1 Councilmember Brianne Nadeau, who wrote the bill creating the pilot program, tells The 51st that she would like to see it expanded to other locations in D.C. – and eventually made permanent.
