If you've recently found yourself questioning your continence while waiting for a bus back to the East Bay, then you probably found yourself out of luck with regards to the on-hand facilities at the temporary Transbay Terminal on Main Street. As the Examiner points out, the $18 million facility was purposefully left without benches or bathrooms to discourage the previous terminal's notorious homeless population from moving in again. Unfortunately, the strategy also deprives passengers of a basic human right: a decent place to pee while they wait.
And it's not just a problem for those who find themselves doing the gotta-go dance on the corner of Howard and Main - neighborhood business owners like the Howard Street Coffee Roastery across the street are getting tired of the "I just need to use the restroom" excuse from visitors who often decline to make a purchase in exchange for use of their facilities. So in an effort to provide some relief, AC Transit will start opening their restrooms to all passengers with proof of payment - although they'll be locked 24/7, so you'll have to obtain the keys as you would at an Interstate Truck Stop bathroom. Per the Examiner:
To obtain the keys, passengers must show a proof of payment to a facility employee nearby. The bathrooms will be available from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and will be under constant surveillance by security cameras.
Sounds like a pain - maybe you should just hold it?
