

Human waste shuts down BART escalators - zachwill
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Human-waste-shuts-down-BART-escalators-3735981.php

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pedalpete
I'm sure there are ways to design the environment so that the homeless don't
relieve themselves on the escalators (which is what I'm assuming is
happening).

First off, how about leaving a washroom open?

Though I know many of the homeless suffer from mental illnesses, I feel
somewhat confident that they don't want to crap in public. Could be why they
are using the escalators. The escalator siding probably offers them some small
bit of privacy in an open station (again not from SF, so don't actually know
what the area looks like).

The idea that the cops can't ticket the homeless unless they witness them,
somewhat misses the point. What is a homeless person going to do with a
ticket? Why would they care if they got a ticket they likely can't pay, and
what other options do they have.

As a friend here just mentioned, they would probably appreciate a ticket as
then they'd have something to wipe themselves with.

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cpeterso
The BART restrooms and city's public restrooms in downtown SF have been closed
for years because they were used for prostitution and drug dealing.

The comments in the article may sound like hyperbole, but it is not uncommon
for homeless people in SF to pee in the gutter in full view of everyone or to
leave crap in the middle of the sidewalk. The city sends crews to power wash
the sidewalks every couple weeks.

I've worked in SF for ~10 years and the problem has definitely worsened. The
city patches the symptoms of the problem, but has failed to find real
solutions that are practical yet humane.

------
ricardobeat
"There is not much BART can do"

How about this: <http://imgur.com/a/iTdj9>

