I just found out about this???

In some places yes, I've paid to use the loo in European cities as well so it's not just a UK thing.

I live in York and our public toilets you need to pay, i think 20p

It varies, I recall living in Germany in the 70s/80s and one had to buy toilet tissue from a machine, hence the popularity of small packs of tissues!

I used to live in Greece and this was/is definitely a feature. The worst were the disgusting women's toilets at the Athens bus station serving the |Peloponnese, where an absolute dragon of a woman insisted you pay at least a Euro, handed over two sheets of bog paper and then you entered one of those old-fashioned, 'squat' toilets. And the whole place was filthy. A friend of mine who speaks fluent Greek was conned into handing over TWO Euros (I told her she had no excuse for not arguing the case).

My town centre has some toilets that cost 50p or so, but they’re lovely and clean so I really don’t mind.

I hate it when you’re charged for loos and they’re absolutely disgusting

There's a charge for most facilities in my local city and the nearest beaches (quite busy places), but not in the market towns.

The number of facilities that have been closed since 2010 is a big issue.

Occasionally in very touristy areas. You have to pay in some areas of the Lake District for example

Where I live I can only think of 1 council run public toilet in the park and that's free. Most public toilets have closed. Supermarkets usually have a free public toilet as do library's if you can find one still open.

I remember having afternoon tea at Harrods and the shock that they gave us ONE token to use the loo. This was back in the dark ages though.
There used to be an attendant at some shops - I think Peter Jones had them. You would leave them some coins. Of course I don't carry any money now.

Just travelled last week from my local town station (free toilets) to Liverpool Lime St station (free toilets).

I live in a small seaside town (not one of the busy ones), where there are 4 sets of public toilets - all free.

No, I’ve not encountered it in the UK. France are very strict on payment I’ve found, so is Italy.

Sometimes. Usually train stations. You used to have to pay for the tour provided by our local councils, but they sold them all.

We had to pay everywhere in Austria and Germany last summer, including places like McDonalds. The Netherlands was more relaxed.

99% of the time, no.

In other European countries it's quite common to have a (usually) woman man toilets in public and even in bars and cafes and (sometimes affectionately called Madam Pee Pee) who will clean the toilet ahead of you using it and give you loo roll, for a small fee of about 50 cents.

At St. Pancras station the toilets are free.

I live in a European city where there are very very few public toilets and most of those have a fee (90 centimes or a Euro). When I was having radiotherapy which gave me urgency for the toilet, I could barely leave the house, and going to the supermarket usually resulted in an accident; I had a disabled pass but there are no disabled toilets!

Men here tend to just wee wherever in the street.

I know the toilet facilities at Glagow Central and Edinburgh Waverley stations are free to use, which is good.

But the worrying trend round where I live is that the local authority toilet facilities can only be accessed if you have a bank card to pay the fee. They don't accept cash payment at all. I think that's so discriminatory.
I know there is a Disabled key that people with disability can apply for to use the specialist toilet facilities but I don't know anything about it - whether it's free , what the criteria is etc.

In some public toilets, yes. In others, no. Been like this for years. I presume that's where the expression, "spend a penny", comes from.

Yes. 50p in Plymouth, card payment accepted. That’s if you can find one to use.

This is odd because I travel a lot through remote parts of the UK, and I’ve never had to pay in a remote area at all. I’ve often used loos even on barely inhabited islands and there’s never been a fee.

Yes. You have to pay 20p to use the toilets in our town centre. The council employs an attendant so it seems reasonable.

If there is no attendant the toilets just get vandalised because sadly some people are awful and thus we cannot have nice things.

I don't see why people should have to pay to pee!
You don't if you go in a hedge or bush.

However if you want a clean toilet, with toilet paper, running water, soap and drying facilties as well as someone to clean them and the building to be maintained the 50p is a bargain!

To be honest so many public toilets have had to close because people are revolting and can't use them without trashing them - I'd much rather pay 50p so they can have an assistant keeping an eye on everything.

Yes but it is less frequent than it used to be. My grandad used to say he needed to “spend a penny”

The nearest seaside ones have a lady that actually takes the money. Some in the town centre take payment(and open if you're in there too long). Plus some train stations charge but the majority are free.

Occasionally. Not very often though. I can’t remember the last time I had to pay to use one.

In my experience it’s much more common to have to pay to use public loos in continental Europe than in the UK.

Sometimes yes. Mostly no.