FEMALE FESTIVAL-GOERS FED up with spending a sizeable chunk of their weekend queuing for the toilet will have another option at Electric Picnic this year.

Women’s urinals are set to make their Irish music festival debut when 80,000 people descend on Stradbally, Co Laois, this weekend.

The facilities, made by UK company Peequal, will be available at a number of toilet areas across the Electric Picnic arena.

Unlike a conventional portaloo, the toilets are designed solely for urination, with users squatting rather than sitting.

The individual units provide coverage from the waist down, while their open-air, touch-free design means users do not need to touch doors, locks or toilet seats.

Dozens of the urinals have been installed at Stradbally. Future Events Hire Future Events Hire

Peequal claims its urinals can be used three times faster than conventional portable toilets, with the idea being to get women who only need to urinate out of lengthy festival toilet queues.

The company says the facilities can also be cleaned externally (via a hose) and are designed to improve ventilation.

It will be the first time the urinals have appeared at an Irish music festival.

They have already appeared at some major festivals and events in Britain, including Glastonbury and Reading and Leeds festivals.

The company behind their introduction to Irish events says Peequal has a 90% rebooking rate among events which have previously used them.

‘A quicker experience’

Electric Picnic festival director Melvin Benn is already familiar with the facilities from events across the Irish Sea.

“I was going to say I’ve been using them for a long time,” Benn joked when asked about their introduction at Electric Picnic.

“But they’ve been coming to my shows for quite a long time in the UK.

“Actually, I’m told they are a much cleaner and better and quicker experience and that’s something that I hope people do enjoy.”

The company says the urinals are made in Somerset from a sugar cane biopolymer and recycled plastic recovered from the ocean.

Sarah McClean, general manager of Future Events Hire, which has partnered with Peequal to bring the facilities to Irish events, said the aim was to tackle a longstanding disparity in toilet queues.

“Men have had the freedom to use urinals and get straight back to enjoying an event for years so why shouldn’t women have the same option?” McClean said.

She added that the company was not introducing the facilities simply for novelty value.

“It solves a very real problem at events, and the team at Peequal have put so much time into researching how to do it best,” she said.