Transport chiefs are facing calls to remove the latest “Turdis” lavatory from a suburban street after it sparked a fresh outcry from residents.
The steel cubicle was installed in Chigwell, a north-east London suburb where average house prices top £650,000 and famous residents have included Lord Sugar, TV presenter Mark Wright and Sir Bobby Moore.
It is the latest of 42 roadside loos due to appear on bus routes across the capital without formal consultation, at a total cost of about £6 million.
Julie Thomas, a 50-year-old deputy head teacher, said she was “shocked” when the 11ft-high cubicle appeared outside her home in Manor Road.
She said: “I had a letter from TfL about a week before it was built. In the letter they said it was going to be ‘designed to be unobtrusive’. I’d like to move it to the home of whoever decided to put it here and see if they think it’s unobtrusive.
“I’m not being unreasonable but they need a better location. Somewhere not in front of my window.”
Last February, Mayor Sadiq Khan announced plans to introduce the facilities, accessible to drivers with keys, on routes across the city following the closure of many public conveniences.
TfL bypassed normal planning processes, which would require consultation with residents, because the lavatories are considered vital infrastructure.
But the roll-out has sparked uproar — the first cubicle, in Biggin Hill, was taken away last month after locals complained and gave it a Doctor Who-inspired nickname, the Turdis.
Ms Thomas said of the new lavatory in Chigwell: “I’m not saying the bus drivers shouldn’t have a toilet, because that’s someone’s basic right. But it’s my basic right not to have my property devalued.”
Gavin Odolant-Smith, manager of the nearby Crown and Crooked Billet pub, said: “It’s funny because the drivers still use our toilets.”
A TfL spokesman said the cubicles are vital to improve conditions for drivers and reduce the risk of road danger.
Nick Fairholme, director of project and programme delivery at TfL, said it tried to be “mindful” in installing the facilities and will meet residents.
