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Revealed: Where are all the toilets on the Paris Metro and RER

Authorities in Paris want to double the number of toilets available to the travelling public on the Paris Metro and RER network, which has come as a surprise to most Parisians who didn't realise there were any. Here's a look at where they all are.

Published: 5 September 2018 16:40 CEST
Revealed: Where are all the toilets on the Paris Metro and RER
Photo: RATP

When Valerie Pecresse the president of the greater Paris region of Île-de-France announced this week she wanted to double the number of toilets available on the Metro most Parisians (at least those with a Twitter account) reacted with shock.

Pecresse said: “Sorry to talk about the smells, the unease that can be felt in the morning… We must at least double the number of toilets on the Metro so that travellers are a little less uncomfortable when they take it.

Pecresse added that she wanted to give Parisians the desire to use public transport by making it “comfortable” and “clean”.

Parisians were left stunned, not so much because they were surprised by Pecresse's much-needed plan to improve cleanliness on the Metro and the conditions of travelling for passengers but because they had no idea there were any toilets on the Metro or RER train network.

One Twitter wag pointed out that doubling zero still leaves you with zero.

But Paris transport authority RATP took to Twitter to set the record straight.

According to them there are in fact 48 toilets on the Metro and the RER.

Most of these, 32 in fact, are on the RER lines A and B which cross the Paris region and the centre of the capital from west to east and from north to south.

And there are 16 on the Metro network, which for those of us who thought there were none at all sounds like a lot, although given there are over 350 Metro stations, it's actually a pitiful number.

So where are these magical 16 toilets where desperate passengers can relieve themselves on the way to work?

Well the best line to be on if you have a weak bladder is the speedy and modern line 14.

Commuters need not worry if they get caught short on this line that crosses the city because there are loos at the stations, Olympiades, Bercy, Bibliothèque François Mitterand, Cours Saint-Emilion, Gare de Lyon, Madeleine, Pyramides and Saint-Lazare.

As for the other toilets, well there will be three more added at the rabbit warren that is Chatelet-Les Halles from November once the works are complete.

There is a place to relieve yourself at Trocadero station on Line 6, Charles-de-Gaulle Etoile on line 1, Cluny-Sorbonne on Line 10, Bobigny on Line 5 and Les Agnettes and Asnieres-Aubervilliers on Line 13 and Villejuif-Louis Aragon on Line 7.

But know you know which stations they are at, the next problem is find out out exactly where these toilets are. RATP say some are next to tickets counters and machines, whilst others are at the entrances to Metro stations. Others however are on the other side of the barriers so you'll need a ticket to take a leak.

For a full interactive map of where to find toilets in Paris and the mythical 16 toilets on the Metro CLICK HERE. The map also contains detailed information for where to find each loo.

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PARIS

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Efforts to relocate wild rabbits that are a common sight on the lawns of the historic Invalides memorial complex have provoked criticism from animal rights groups.

Published: 14 February 2024 13:01 CET
Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Tourists and Parisians have long been accustomed to the sight of wild rabbits frolicking around the lawns of Les Invalides, one of the French capital’s great landmarks.

But efforts are underway to relocate the fluffy animals, accused of damaging the gardens and drains around the giant edifice that houses Napoleon’s tomb, authorities said.

Police said that several dozen bunnies had been captured since late January and relocated to the private estate of Breau in the Seine-et-Marne region outside Paris, a move that has prompted an outcry from animal rights activists.

“Two operations have taken place since 25 January,” the police prefecture told AFP.

“Twenty-four healthy rabbits were captured on each occasion and released after vaccination” in Seine-et-Marne, the prefecture said.

Six more operations are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.

Around 300 wild rabbits live around Les Invalides, according to estimates.

“The overpopulation on the site is leading to deteriorating living conditions and health risks,” the prefecture said.

Authorities estimate the cost of restoring the site, which has been damaged by the proliferation of underground galleries and the deterioration of gardens, pipes and flora, at €366,000.

Animal rights groups denounced the operation.

The Paris Animaux Zoopolis group said the rabbits were being subjected to “intense stress” or could be killed “under the guise of relocation”.

“A number of rabbits will die during capture and potentially during transport,” said the group, accusing authorities of being “opaque” about their methods.

The animal rights group also noted that Breau was home to the headquarters of the Seine-et-Marne hunting federation.

The police prefecture insisted that the animals would not be hunted.

In 2021, authorities classified the rabbits living in Paris as a nuisance but the order was reversed following an outcry from animal groups who have been pushing for a peaceful cohabitation with the animals.

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