Singapore, 23 December 2023 – Despite a common perception that public toilets should remain free, close to 1 in 2 Singaporeans expressed a willingness to pay if cleanliness could be guaranteed.
Public opinion about paying for cleaner toilets however remained divided. Of those willing, 82% were open to paying 10-30 cents, with 42% willing to fork out 50 cents to over $1 for a spotless experience. These findings, and more were uncovered in a new nationwide study conducted by Singapore Management University (SMU), with the support of World Toilet Organization (WTO), Restroom Association (Singapore) (RAS), Public Hygiene Council (PHC) and Singapore Kindness Movement (SKM).
Conducted between August and September 2024 by SMU Principal Lecturer of Statistics Rosie Ching and her 222 undergraduates in an experiential Statistics project, the study covered 2,602 toilets across 1,428 coffeeshops, hawker centres, SMRT stations and shopping malls. A total of 4,905 people were interviewed, comprising 510 employees and 4,395 customers, on the state of public toilets. These interviews allowed detailed insights into human perceptions of toilet cleanliness and how they compare to 2023 and 2020.
Sentosa emerged as the cleanest region for public toilets in hawker centres and coffeeshops in 2024, topping the list ahead of Newton and Tanglin. Despite ongoing efforts to improve hygiene standards in the Year of Public Hygiene, the sanitation in coffeeshop toilets across Singapore were slightly worse than in 2023.
The study also compared coffeeshop and hawker centre toilets with public toilets in shopping centres and SMRT stations. Shopping centre toilets emerged as the cleanest and significantly outperformed the other categories, highlighting a stark divide in hygiene standards. A whopping 94.29% say they use public toilets in both coffeeshops and shopping centres, with local citizens citing “irresponsible users” for the dirty state of toilets.
The study identified 14 out of 17 key toilet attributes as being below acceptable standards. Wet or oily floors, clogged sinks, dirty toilet bowls, insufficient ventilation, and missing or overflowing bins were among the most frequent complaints. Cleaning schedules were often outdated or entirely absent, with only taps, sinks, and soap achieving reasonable ratings.
A worrying finding is that the closer cooking facilities are to toilets in coffeeshops and hawker centres, the significantly dirtier the toilets are, indicating a strong correlation between the two factors.
All results are accessible at www.toiletstatistics.com and photographs at https://smu.sg/waterloo24.
Said Ms. Ching, “It’s been nearly a decade since I launched this project in 2015, yet we still find ourselves dealing with dirty public toilets in coffeeshops. As we mark the Year of Public Hygiene, how much longer must Singapore wait for meaningful improvements to public toilets—especially as we move toward becoming a super-aged society? I want to especially commend my tireless toilet student army. Together, we strive for a cleaner, better, and safer Singapore, where every citizen deserves access to a clean and dignified public toilet.”
“The Public Hygiene Council is happy to once again partner Singapore Management University on Project Waterloo, to understand the situation of public toilet cleanliness in Singapore and see how we can collectively help to improve it. Public toilet cleanliness is a shared responsibility. Everyone, including premises operators, cleaners and users, must do their part to keep our public toilets clean. Strengthened partnerships and collaboration across all stakeholder groups remain critical,” said Mr Andrew Khng, Chairman, Public Hygiene Council.
Please refer to Annex for the detailed findings of the 2024 survey, titled Waterloo.