On Fri, 23 Mar 2012 15:43:47 +0000, Roland Perry
wrote:

In message , at 16:21:27 on
Fri, 23 Mar 2012, Jarle H Knudsen remarked:
It's a bit of a shame you can't use your Oyster card.

Because of banking regulations that would probably only be allowed if
the toilets were operated by TfL. However, they could accept "Paywave"
credit cards.

But the Oyster card is being used on non-TfL services!

I suppose it is, so there's been some relaxation, but still train fares.

It can also be used to pay for entry to a museum,

I'm not aware of that. TfL don't accept it at their own museum.

so it's apparently legal to use it to pay for other things than
transportation fares.

The bit which isn't legal is TfL acting as a "bank" - holding customers'
money then paying it out to third parties.

Nowadays the mere act of transmitting other peoples' money is probably
enough to involve at least brushing against some part of
money-laundering law.

On Fri, 23 Mar 2012 10:50:20 +0000, Roland Perry
wrote:

In message , at 10:25:42 on Fri,
23 Mar 2012, Theo Markettos
remarked:
I'm fairly sure there's a law that says you must provide free toilets if
you serve alcohol - and this has been floated as the reason why St
Pancras toilets are free (the champagne bar etc).

Does this mean you can't have 'a trolley service of drinks and ... a fully
licensed bar' on a 313? Or a unit where the only toilet is locked out of
use?

Trains are a special case and aren't licenced, so I would expect any law
about licenced premises not to apply.

They are "licensed" in the sense that the sale of alcohol is dependant
on licensing laws which include trains within their scope (the only
real exemption seems to be any requirement for licensing of individual
places) which limit when and to whom the alcohol can be sold and can
prohibit such sales.
In any case, there does not seem to be any mention of toilets (or
tiolets) in current Licensing Acts.

In message , at 18:24:43 on
Fri, 23 Mar 2012, Charles Ellson remarked:
Nowadays the mere act of transmitting other peoples' money is probably
enough to involve at least brushing against some part of
money-laundering law.

Indeed so. Read the T&C of a "shopping card" and they say so explicitly.
They also say that such gift cards can't be used by under-18's (if
you've been following another somewhat USA-centric thread about minors
using gift cards to buy train tickets).
--
Roland Perry

On Mar 23, 7:51*am, Arthur Figgis wrote:
..
This doesn't seem to apply to station toilets - London Victoria seems to
come with undesirables built in.


When I worked there in the early 90s it had a fearsome reputation for
"rent" boys so much so that "The Bill" did an episode on the station
in which they made it obvious that it was Victoria station and
although my memory is vague there was some sort of campaign that ran
with it. I won't go into why they changed the hand soap to an
abbrasive one though.

Richard

"Roland Perry" schreef

: It's whether you have the 30p on you or not (ie no use if all you have
: is a 50p). Although the loos at Kings Cross have change machines
: outside, so that's OK until they break.
:
: One of the two turnstyles had broken already. "Sorry for the
: inconvenience" a sign on it quipped.

Have the yellow "Warning - Slippery Floor" cones appeared yet ?

Colin Youngs
Brussels

In message , at 22:34:49 on Fri, 23 Mar
2012, Colin Youngs remarked:
: It's whether you have the 30p on you or not (ie no use if all you have
: is a 50p). Although the loos at Kings Cross have change machines
: outside, so that's OK until they break.
:
: One of the two turnstyles had broken already. "Sorry for the
: inconvenience" a sign on it quipped.

Have the yellow "Warning - Slippery Floor" cones appeared yet ?

I didn't go inside.

--
Roland Perry

On Thu, 22 Mar 2012 21:15:06 +0000, Roland Perry
wrote:
I'm fairly sure there's a law that says you must provide free
toilets if
you serve alcohol

It is normally a licence condition. At Manc Picc it used to involve
a dedicated bog upstairs for which staff would issue a door code.

Neil

--
Neil Williams, Milton Keynes, UK

On Fri, 23 Mar 2012 07:51:01 +0000, Arthur Figgis
wrote:
Then there are the German stations which charge about the same as
an
open return on Virgin.

Also found in Switzerland. The upside of them is there is a
dedicated cleaner; cubicles are often cleaned after each use.

Neil

--
Neil Williams, Milton Keynes, UK

On Thu, 22 Mar 2012 20:41:09 +0000, Arthur Figgis wrote:

On 22/03/2012 20:21, Roland Perry wrote:

All the toilets are 30p (beneath the pub and at the southern end of the
mezzanine), and I don't understand how the Prezzo bar complies with the
law in this respect. The pub has its own free toilets on both floors.

What law?

There are lots stations with catering and only paid-for bogs, and others
with catering and no bogs at all. I looked this up with regard to a
then-new coffee place on West Croydon station, and it seemed that it is
myth that toilets have to be provided where there is food and drink on
sale, however local authorities can choose to require them.

I think that is the correct answer. From my memory (which may admittedly
be wrong) the Station Cafe in Craven Arms -- not at the station, despite
its name -- does not have any toilet facilities at all.

--
Bewdley, Worcs. ~90m asl.

In message
, at
14:04:56 on Sat, 24 Mar 2012, Owain
remarked:
It's regarded as a banking facility (or e-money), if they can be spent
with a third party. Most gift cards are tied to one shop or product.

However the regulations allow you to get a refund of the stored value
on your Oyster.

So all that's needed is a machine (A) which you touch your Oyster
against and (if you have stored PAYG value) it gives you a 20p or even
a 50p coin as a partial refund.

That's a very clever idea, but has a drawback - it would allow thieves
to "cash in" on lost/stolen cards.
--
Roland Perry