George S. May Business Blog

Pay to pee? Oh Ryanair, you must be joking.

Ireland-based airline, Ryanair, may have a new business plan that smudges their previous perception of being low-cost. In an interview this morning with BBC, CEO Michael O’Leary revealed that they might begin charging passengers to use the toilet:

“One thing we have looked at in the past and are looking at again is the possibility of maybe putting a coin slot on the toilet door.”

Along with being low-cost, Ryanair has also taken a rap for being more concerned with, to put it nicely, being cost efficient, rather than providing ease for their patrons. Actually, the fact that their CEO came out and leaned toward such a notion is all the more comical, as apparently it has been a long standing joke among European passengers that the airline’s next step would be to start charging ‘a pound a pee’.

Consumer watchdog, which.co.uk, didn’t find the comment as funny however:

“It seems Ryanair is prepared to plumb any depth to make a fast buck and, once again, is putting profit before the comfort of its customers.”

Amid a vicious recession, I understand upping prices or charging for goods/services that usually aren’t charged for. Drastic times, calls for drastic measures.  But what are they going to do about the guy that is penniless and full of – well, you get my drift. Furthermore, won’t this encourage people not to drink? Will the revenue from the bathroom tax outweigh the capital lost from people not buying liquor because they don’t want to have to pay to relieve themselves?

I can’t imagine Ryanair would really go through with this, but should they, I predict far more cons then pros in the equation.

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