Toilets at St Albans train station are regularly rendered unusable following crude graffiti and vandalism, according to Brimbank’s citizen of the year John Puli.
Mr Puli said the revamped station’s toilets were often found in a disgusting state, including having faeces smeared on the walls and the floors awash with urine.
“They’ve built a beautiful station, but within a week of the toilets opening this was happening,” Mr Puli said.
“I go in there and have to leave straight away, it’s disgusting and nobody seems to care.
“I told the guys at the station, they said it’s not their responsibility, so did the council, I even told the police, but nothing is ever done.”
He said each time the toilet is cleaned, the vandals return. “It gets a bit of cleaning, but then it happens again,” he said.
“I have an irritable bowel, so it’s actually quite dangerous for me to hold it in, but I can’t use the toilets when they’re like that.
“It’s the disabled that are most affected. It’s an abomination.”
Metro is responsible for the maintenance of all train station amenities. Spokesperson Marcus Williams said while the majority of station users treated the facilities correctly, they were working to improve on any shortfalls.
“We share community concern about vandalism and spend more than $10 million on the issue every year,” Mr Williams said.
“This is money that could be better spent improving the network.
“The station’s facilities are frequently used by our passengers and members of the public. The absolute vast majority treats them with the respect the community rightly expects.”
He said anyone witnessing vandalism at the station should immediately report it to public safety officers (PSOs) at the station.
“We urge anyone who witnesses vandalism or any other crime to speak to station staff or PSOs, call triple-0 or press the emergency button located in trains and on platforms,” he said.
“Across the network our authorised officers and security and surveillance team work closely with Victoria Police, which has PSOs patrolling stations every night.”
