4 ms·

I'm not elderly yet, but I have struggled with a similar train toilet door. _Why_ does this stupid thing need a lock button? In what scenario do I want to go in

I'm not elderly yet, but I have struggled with a similar train toilet door. _Why_ does this stupid thing need a lock button? In what scenario do I want to go into a toilet, hit the "close door" button, and _not_ want the door to be locked? It didn't help that the design of the buttons wasn't particularly clear, either. I can see the benefit of the electric opening/closing mechanism, because sliding doors are heavy, but the lock should've been a physical mechanism, or at least acted like one.

bemmu 3y ago
Without the lock button you could hit the "close door" button and leave the toilet while it is closing, and then no-one would be able to enter to unlock it. But I agree something familiarly mechanical with the mechanism clearly visible would be better than any fancy solution.
- lostlogin 3y ago
  > Without the lock button you could hit the "close door" button and leave the toilet while it is closing, and then no-one would be able to enter to unlock it. According to the article, you can do that anyway. “you can close the door, then hold the lever just beyond the point at which the locking pin could engage with it, but not to the point where it reads as “locked”. Then you can open the door, but the locking pin projects into thin air; thus the lever is free and can be moved to the locked position. The door close button remains active and you can then close the door. I confirmed that the door will then immediately lock as soon as the door is closed. Since I could do this and then jump out before the door closes, this is effectively a toilet DoS vulnerability on a train.”
madsbuch 3y ago
A physical lock can get stuck. Especially on a moving trains with vibrations that could tense up the door. Weakened people, anxious people and other people with disabilities need to be able to lock and unlock the doors without getting stuck. My guess is that the metaphor used for this train is too allow people full control over door lock. I don't think many people realise what it takes to build toilet in trains in a place like the UK where the disabled associations and protections are really strong.
- lukan 3y ago
  "Weakened people, anxious people and other people with disabilities need to be able to lock and unlock the doors without getting stuck." I have never experienced a simple lock to get stuck, but there are panic buttons inside the toilets as well. "I don't think many people realise what it takes to build toilet in trains in a place like the UK where the disabled associations and protections are really strong." And I don't think this is a bad thing.
  - madsbuch 3y ago
    I never said it was a bad thing. I merely point out that is is ignorant to straight up believe that a "simple lock" is the solution without properly understanding the issue - just like you do.
    - lukan 3y ago
      Ah, I did not try to imply that you did. I was actually unsure how you meant it, but just wanted to emphasize anyway, that those regulations are very useful for disabled people. Because in most places, you would just get stuck using a wheelchair on your own. (German trains for example, in most trains you would just not get into - and if you managed to arrive at your destination, you might find out, that there are only stairs and no elevator, despite there should be one. But on this day they maybe changed the lane or whatever, they don't care. I noticed while travelling with a 2 person stroller)
- justsomehnguy 3y ago
  The trains in the past two centuries: OH NOES. Seriously, why it was not a problem for two centuries yet nowadays it's suddenly a new problem which requires a complex, electromechanical computer operated solution?
  - doix 3y ago
    Because in the past people did not care about people with disabilities. It's like saying why we need wheel chair ramps when we didn't in the past. Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending the current implementation, but it makes sense to me to try and improve the world to make it more disability friendly.
Eisenstein 3y ago
They mention it in the article but it is to keep people from pressing 'close' and then jumping out while it closes and becomes unable to be opened from the outside.
Symbiote 3y ago
Your question is answered at the start of the article, which also shows a photograph of your suggested solution on the newest trains in use in Britain.

bemmu 3y ago

Without the lock button you could hit the "close door" button and leave the toilet while it is closing, and then no-one would be able to enter to unlock it. But I agree something familiarly mechanical with the mechanism clearly visible would be better than any fancy solution.

lostlogin 3y ago
> Without the lock button you could hit the "close door" button and leave the toilet while it is closing, and then no-one would be able to enter to unlock it. According to the article, you can do that anyway. “you can close the door, then hold the lever just beyond the point at which the locking pin could engage with it, but not to the point where it reads as “locked”. Then you can open the door, but the locking pin projects into thin air; thus the lever is free and can be moved to the locked position. The door close button remains active and you can then close the door. I confirmed that the door will then immediately lock as soon as the door is closed. Since I could do this and then jump out before the door closes, this is effectively a toilet DoS vulnerability on a train.”

madsbuch 3y ago

A physical lock can get stuck. Especially on a moving trains with vibrations that could tense up the door. Weakened people, anxious people and other people with disabilities need to be able to lock and unlock the doors without getting stuck. My guess is that the metaphor used for this train is too allow people full control over door lock. I don't think many people realise what it takes to build toilet in trains in a place like the UK where the disabled associations and protections are really strong.

lukan 3y ago
"Weakened people, anxious people and other people with disabilities need to be able to lock and unlock the doors without getting stuck." I have never experienced a simple lock to get stuck, but there are panic buttons inside the toilets as well. "I don't think many people realise what it takes to build toilet in trains in a place like the UK where the disabled associations and protections are really strong." And I don't think this is a bad thing.
- madsbuch 3y ago
  I never said it was a bad thing. I merely point out that is is ignorant to straight up believe that a "simple lock" is the solution without properly understanding the issue - just like you do.
  - lukan 3y ago
    Ah, I did not try to imply that you did. I was actually unsure how you meant it, but just wanted to emphasize anyway, that those regulations are very useful for disabled people. Because in most places, you would just get stuck using a wheelchair on your own. (German trains for example, in most trains you would just not get into - and if you managed to arrive at your destination, you might find out, that there are only stairs and no elevator, despite there should be one. But on this day they maybe changed the lane or whatever, they don't care. I noticed while travelling with a 2 person stroller)
justsomehnguy 3y ago
The trains in the past two centuries: OH NOES. Seriously, why it was not a problem for two centuries yet nowadays it's suddenly a new problem which requires a complex, electromechanical computer operated solution?
- doix 3y ago
  Because in the past people did not care about people with disabilities. It's like saying why we need wheel chair ramps when we didn't in the past. Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending the current implementation, but it makes sense to me to try and improve the world to make it more disability friendly.

Eisenstein 3y ago

They mention it in the article but it is to keep people from pressing 'close' and then jumping out while it closes and becomes unable to be opened from the outside.

Symbiote 3y ago

Your question is answered at the start of the article, which also shows a photograph of your suggested solution on the newest trains in use in Britain.