In the streets of Hamburg, Germany, a new form of urban deterrent is turning public urination into an instant lesson in cause and effect. Known as “anti-pee paint,” this specialized nano-coating creates a superhydrophobic surface, repelling liquids so completely that anything touching it slides off with remarkable force. The result? Anyone attempting to relieve themselves on a treated wall experiences an immediate and unforgettable splash-back. The technology borrows from nature, mimicking the microscopic structure of a lotus leaf. Tiny ridges and air pockets prevent any liquid from adhering, meaning walls remain clean while offenders get an eye-opening consequence — all without the need for confrontation, fines, or patrols. It’s an ingenious blend of physics and human psychology: the paint doesn’t punish with authority, it punishes with instant feedback. First popularized in Hamburg’s St. Pauli district in 2015, this approach has since been trialed in other cities like London and San Francisco. While the coating is costly, city authorities note significant savings on cleaning and maintenance, and a marked decrease in repeat offenses. Beyond hygiene, it’s a striking example of how urban design and material science can work together to shape behavior. For engineers, urban planners, and city residents, anti-pee paint is both a marvel of nano-engineering and a lesson in poetic justice. The streets stay cleaner, the message is immediate, and the offender leaves with a story they won’t soon forget.
This is hostile architecture. Build toilets instead.
They have toilets. People are just wretched.
I’ve been to a very large capital in Europe recently, there’s been a whole three toilets when I needed one, ranging from 15 to 30 minutes away, and the best part is when I got to them, all were inaccessible because they are located inside of the park that closes doors at 18:00 (before that, in fact). The toilets are even marked 24h on the map, very convenient.
So yeah, even not considering drunk people, there are not nearly enough toilets in a lot of places.
A lot of Europe charges to use them though, whoch i find weird. Imo they should be funded by public budgets the way libraries, school buses, roads etc are.
Like, of ya gotta pee, ya gotta pee. If you gotta pee and you don’t have any Euros on you, what else are you supposed to fucking do?? Literally what are your options at that point?
I’m sure some people would do this anyway but I suspect a lot of them can’t/won’t pay for a public toilet and aren’t close enough to a private one. It’s a UX issue
what am I supposed to do? tap my phone and pay .5 usd for the privilege of using a clean-ish toilet in the middle of the plaza. not that big of an issue.
They are, and many low traffic toilets are completely free.
However, in high traffic areas, some arguments they tend to give against this:
A lot of toilets in Europe in low traffic areas tend to be free. There’s also quite some open air urinals in heavy traffic areas that are free but they smell horrible.
There’s also some European countries that allow/tolerate public urination but limit it to non-privately owned natural bushes and require you to do it decently. (Not showing any genitals)
In places where they ask for money you can often plead your case and can enter without paying. Many places also ask for money without actually having somebody present or blocking your entry if you do not. I’ve seen a lot of little plates with cash just laying there without anybody being present.
Clearly not enough easily accessible toilets for people to not pee on the sides of buildings. If the problem is so big that you’re considering designing hydrophobic pisser punisher paint you clearly don’t have enough places for people to pee.
Not so much in London, and usually you need to pay for the public ones.
Yeah, people forget that people is the reason we cannot have nice things.