BEIJING -- Restrooms can be a sensitive subject--or a major source of pride--in the U.S. convenience store industry. Now the Chinese are raising the plunger and throwing down the toilet gauntlet with what one Chinese tourism official is calling a “toilet revolution.”
An official from the Beijing Environmental Sanitation Engineering Group in China said that new public toilets will become "the 5th space" alongside the family space, work space, leisure space and cyber space, according to a report by the Shanghaiist website.
Beijing's new generation of high-tech public restrooms officially opened to the public in mid-November, aiming to revamp the capital's image for having somewhat grimy public toilets.
Li Jinzao, head of China's National Tourist Administration, said there would be a "toilet revolution" across China, promising that by 2017, all toilets will boast a "three-star rating" and will be "of adequate quality, hygienic, free of charge and effectively managed."
With the appearance of a bright convenience store, "5th Space" opened outside government offices in the city's Fangshan district. The building offers Wi-Fi, vending machines, ATMs, flat-screen TVs, electric-car charging outposts and recycling bins for paper and plastic bottles.
In addition, lounges and shower rooms are also available on site for workers manning the building.
The new toilets will be rolled out across Beijing and other cities soon, said the report.
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