Relief for weekend drinkers as mobile urinals are installed

For male Londoners rolling home after a beer-fuelled Friday night, there will no longer be any excuse. The practice of urinating in dark corners is being replaced by the very latest in socially constructive street furniture.

For male Londoners rolling home after a beer-fuelled Friday night, there will no longer be any excuse. The practice of urinating in dark corners is being replaced by the very latest in socially constructive street furniture.

From this Friday, men needing to relieve themselves in the Soho and Covent Garden areas of the capital will be invited to avail themselves of mobile open-air pissoirs.

Westminster City Council is introducing the facilities in an £11,000 project to cut down on "alarming levels" of fouling which have left hundreds of walls and doorways reeking.

The scheme's backerssay success dependson the ethical standards of London's men. Judith Warner, chairwoman of Westminster's environment and leisure committee, said: "These urinals will only work if people become more socially responsible."

The Dutch-made urinals depart from the French model in which only the feet and head of users can be seen. Instead, those suffering from bladder pressure will stand four at a time with their backs to the passing public.

The urinals will be "open" on Friday and Saturday nights from 7pm to 8.30am.