Successful Public Toilet Program Expands to the South of Market

For immediate release: April 21, 2015

Contact: Rachel Gordon, 415-554-6045

San Francisco, CA -- City leaders and community representatives will join together on Wednesday, April 22, to celebrate the expansion of the Pit Stop public toilet program to the South of Market area.

The SOMA Pit Stop is located at Sixth and Jessie streets. The portable solar-powered SOMA Pit Stop offers two toilets and sinks, a used needle receptacle and a dog waste station with bags and a trash can. The neighborhood-serving program aims to reduce human waste on the streets and give people access to a clean and safe bathroom.

What: Grand Opening celebration for the new SOMA Pit Stop

When: Wednesday, April 22, 3 p.m.

Where: Sixth and Jessie streets

Who: Supervisor Jane Kim, Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru, neighborhood advocates

The portable solar-powered SOMA Pit Stop is trucked into its location each day after overnight servicing. It is open from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Friday. An on-site attendant makes sure the toilets are kept clean and used for their intended purpose.

Public Works has partnered with the nonprofit San Francisco Clean City Coalition, which provides the staffing as part of a job-training program.

The first three Pit Stops opened in the Tenderloin in July 2014 for an initial test run of six months, which has since been expanded to a year. There, the average daily number of requests for steam cleaning services, largely related to human waste on the sidewalks and streets, dropped from 27 to 15.

The Board of Supervisors approved funding in January to add a fourth location in the South of Market.

“We have seen the benefits of the Tenderloin Pit Stop – a significant reduction in steam-cleaning requests and expanded access to public bathrooms that provide people a place to take care of their needs with dignity,” said District 6 Supervisor Jane Kim, who represents the Tenderloin and South of Market. We know this program works. I'm excited to extend this program to SOMA.”

San Francisco Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru credits the staffing component as critical to the success of the Pit Stop model. “People know the Pit Stops are clean, safe and available, and that makes people want to use them instead of relieving themselves in doorways or alleys or between parked cars. Our crews, and the public, have noticed the difference.”

SOMA resident Andrew Burgess welcomes the Pit Stop in his neighborhood.

"There's a compelling need to expand this innovative program to the South of Market,” said Burgess. “Sixth Street is a vibrant community in the heart of the City with a diverse mix of singles and families, seniors, nonprofits, dog owners, and small businesses. The Pit Stop is a wonderful new tool that many neighborhoods, mine included, are interested in.”

About San Francisco Public Works: The 24/7 City agency cleans and resurfaces streets; plants and nurtures City-maintained street trees; designs, constructs and maintains City-owned facilities; inspects streets and sidewalks; builds curb ramps; eradicates graffiti; partners with neighborhoods; trains people for jobs; greens the right of way; and educates our communities.