We often hear that Paris is a dirty city. But our capital is not the worst in terms of public hygiene. At least, not when it comes to the cleanliness of toilets accessible in the street.
Who has never complained, while walking in a big city, about not quickly finding public toilets to relieve a pressing need? And, when you finally come across a toilet, you don’t always have to count on the cleanliness of the place… But if you could believe, by hearing it repeated from all sides, that Paris would be the worst city in terms of collective hygiene, this study demonstrates that the French capital does not hold the prize for the worst.
Evaluating the cleanliness of a city is not limited to the waste on the sidewalks but also includes the quality of its health infrastructure and sanitation services, which say a lot about the well-being and health of its population. A recent study carried out by the bathroom equipment sales site Showers to You says more about the cleanliness of public toilets across Europe. After analyzing no less than 19,000 Google reviews on the subject, experts have drawn up a table of European capitals where public toilets are the dirtiest.
On the third step of the podium, we find Riga, the capital of Latvia, with a dirt score of 9.12/10. It is preceded by Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, which therefore wins the silver medal with a dirt score of 9.41/10.
With a particularly high score of 9.71/10, or more than one review in five, and Google comments mentioning “dirty” or “smelling” toilets, it is Brussels, Belgium, which wins the gold medal. Personal hygiene experts explain this lack of cleanliness by cheap infrastructure. In fact, there are fewer than five public toilets per 100,000 inhabitants in the Belgian capital, one of the lowest rates in Europe.
And if you are now put off by Brussels, you should know that Vilnius, in Lithuania, has been designated as the city with the cleanest public toilets with a hygiene score of 9.71/10!
If Paris does indeed appear in this inglorious top 10, this time the French capital does not win first place for the worst. With no less than 15 million travelers per year, no wonder it still comes in sixth place, with 13% negative opinions about the cleanliness of its public toilets, now equipped with outdoor urinals.
