Industrial - Bachelors

biBathrooms’

biBathrooms is a design initiative that was created to improve the public’s perception of safety in all-gender public bathrooms. The Twin-Door Stall provides an active intervention that changes the flow of the public bathroom space, thereby reducing opportunistic harassment and assault against women, girls, and transgender and gender-diverse individuals.

Riley Dalgliesh

Context

The future of Bathrooms

Research

There is a plethora of research already available that shows that sex-segregated bathrooms are biased against women, and are extremely harmful to transgender and gender-diverse individuals. Interviews with Australian building designers revealed that all-gender bathrooms are the most economical and inclusive form of bathroom design that will become commonplace in the future. However, after conducting surveys and interviews with 40+ diverse bathroom users, a common trend became apparent:

Over 36% of women and transgender individuals surveyed did not accept all-gender bathrooms due to concerns about safety and privacy from cisgender men.

Survey Participant

In order to create legislative change, this legitimate concern for the safety of women, girls, and transgender and gender-diverse individuals in all-gender bathrooms needed to be addressed.

social debate vs the design solution

The solution

The biBathrooms design intervention needed to go further than current solutions to the bathroom debate. Current all-gender bathrooms are open-plan and justify their safety through surveillance and onlooker intervention. However, these passive safety interventions simply do not work in many contexts. Thus, assault and harassment prevention through active and unsubtle design intervention was key to biBathrooms’ success.

The Stall

The Twin-Door Stall elegantly alters the flow of the common public bathroom space. The two doors allow users to enter from one side, and exit from the other. This creates a singular flow through the bathroom space, making it more difficult to commit opportunistic acts of harassment or assault.

Twin-Door Interaction

Users enter through the entrance door which moves independently of the exit door. It can then be locked by the user, with no need to additionally secure the automatically locking exit door. When they are ready, the user can then leave through the exit door, which at first moves independently of the entrance door but then pulls the entrance door open. The exit door automatically closes behind the user once they have left the stall.

Entrance

The entrance door is flush with the stall face. It uses a non-contact push sign and colouring to be distinct as an entrance door

Vents blend into grooves on the side of the stall that guides the eye to the entrance, increasing the feeling of privacy.

Natural wood materials are used to generate a feeling of trust and safety.

Exit

The exit door is not flush with the outside edge of the stall. This is to almost disguise it as a door and guide users to the entrance side.

The door uses no visible handles or signs, visually indicating that this door is not for use from the outside. The outline of the door is still indicated by the wood slats to prevent users from idly standing in the doorway.

The outside of the stall is lined with dark-stained wooden slats. These improve soundproofing and visually indicate that this side is the ‘outside’ or ‘back’ of the stall

Lighting and Facilities

Crucial bathroom facilities in the stall are provided to the user. These include a coathanger on the door, a vanity with ample bench space, and a sanitary bin for hygiene products.

The positioning of these elements is also crucial. The pan faces both doors, increasing the perceived security. Users also are poised to look at the exit door, rather than the entrance door.

The sink is next to the exit door, promoting handwashing before exiting. The bench is within reach of the toilet for aid when using sanitary products, and the sanitary bin is within reach of the sink and toilet.

Lighting in the stall is kept bright, and materials within the stall are lighter. This improves the perception of cleanliness and provides a sense of security

space

Spatial design is critical in creating safe environments. Therefore biBathrooms needed to create a carefully laid out public bathroom space to enhance the design of the stall.

Entrances/Exits

The bathroom has two entrances, each signed with clear directions. Stall entrances and the general mixing area are obscured from common areas by the front wall. This gives the space privacy without sacrificing the ability for users to enter and exit the space with ease.

As users enter, the back feature wall is used to catch their eye and draw them in the correct direction. Throughout the bathroom, mirrors are used to increase the feeling of spaciousness and increase the user’s perception of the space.

Greenery is also used at entrances and exits to create a safer feeling environment.

Stall Entrances and Queuing

Two clear queuing spaces are utilised on either side of the stalls. The queuing space is open, allowing users to surveil each other, increasing security.
Stall entrances are arranged in a concave shape, allowing queuing users to see all stall occupancies.

The stall doors have gaps between each door, preventing contact between users going to adjacent stalls

Stall Exits and Accessible Sinks

Stall exits are obscured from the line of sight of queuing users, and lead directly into the common washing and grooming space. This allows users to exit discretely, whilst being encouraged to wash their hands if they did not do so in the stall.

The common washing and grooming space is open so that users and non-users of the stalls can access them. Sinks of varying heights are used to provide accessibility for all individuals and create distinct separations between users.

A large concave mirror above the sinks is used to enhance the user’s perception.

Security

The Twin-Door requires an especially functional and safe lock: The Twin-Lock. The specially designed Twin-Lock provides specialised security for the Twin-Door, and is designed to guide the user through the stall space.

Twin-Lock Interaction

When the stall is entered, the red lock side is open. The colour and geometry indicate to users that they should push the lever in to lock the door.

Once the level is pushed in, it becomes flush with the wall and users are more inclined to exit through the accessible green handle.


When the user opens the green handle, the red lock side is unlocked via a universal joint. As the user leaves the entrance door is free to open behind the user.

Materials

Anodised aluminium and stainless steel are used to create a hygienic and secure feeling lock. All aspects of the lock are non-touch, allowing users to enter and exit the stall without touching possibly contaminated surfaces.

Riley Dalgliesh

Riley (they/them) is a student of Industrial Design who works by the principle that purposeful design can generate extraordinary social change. After studying mechatronics engineering and working in the product design industry for over a year, Riley adapts to both the theoretical and practical aspects of user-centred design.