London’s vibrant Soho neighborhood is testing a new way to tackle a chronic problem it suffers from – men urinating in the streets. The innovative remedy is to protect the walls with a strange “anti-urine” paint.
The authorities of the neighborhood, which includes a large number of bars, restaurants and theaters, and is inhabited by about three thousand people, has been busy painting the walls in about ten strategic points with this paint, which creates a transparent layer on the walls that throws urine back at the person who urinates, similar to immediate retribution for the perpetrators.
Evidence effective
For her part, the local councilor, Aisha Liss, told AFP that “this matter is very effective, with conclusive evidence,” confirming the validity of her words by spraying water on a wall.
The Westminster Municipal Council, whose jurisdiction covers the Soho district, launched the project after receiving several complaints from residents, employees and companies in the neighborhood.
bad smell
“Of course, urine is not a pleasant thing, and the people of our area are angry about the situation,” Lees says, adding, “They cross the threshold of the house in the morning and smell the urination.” It stresses the residents’ right to live “in a clean and safe environment”.
And the local authorities decided to use this type of paint after learning of similar experiences in other places, including Germany, and they intend to paint ten walls in strategic locations in the Soho neighborhood.
“Not a place to pee”
Painted facades read, “This wall is not a place to urinate.”
The Westminster City Council annually spends nearly one million pounds ($1.23 million) to clean the streets, spraying water on the streets filled with urine. He therefore hopes that this coating will contribute to reducing costs.
“We’ll see how much of a difference it makes over the next six months, and if that smell is out of the air,” Lees explains.
The authorities are also assessing the possibility of increasing the fines imposed on violators, as urinating in public places is a violation for which the perpetrator is currently subject to a fine ranging between 50 and 80 pounds ($ 62 and 99).
