"To Handle the Increasing Number of Visitors"
It has been revealed that a timer measuring usage time was installed in the women's restroom at a famous tourist site in China, sparking controversy. The American CNN broadcast reported this on the 11th (local time).
The broadcast stated that the Yungang Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage site, has recently been receiving more attention for restroom controversies than for the grottoes themselves.
According to a video posted on a Chinese social media site, an LED timer is installed above the stalls in the women's restroom at Yungang Grottoes. It is explained that when the stall is not in use, it displays "Muin" (無人, meaning "unoccupied") in green, and when someone enters, it changes to red and shows the time of entry in minutes and seconds.
The video was filmed by a Chinese tourist at a restroom near the ticket office of the tourist site and was reported to a local newspaper. An employee at the site told local media in an interview, "The timer was installed to cope with the increasing number of visitors," adding, "It is installed not only near the ticket office but also inside the Yungang Grottoes tourist area."
The employee explained, "It is impossible to evict someone just because they use the restroom for a long time," and "Having a timer does not mean there is a time limit such as 5 or 10 minutes."
Meanwhile, it is said that the timer was installed starting from May 1st. Recently, the number of visitors has surged, causing a serious shortage of restrooms. Last year, based on ticket sales, 3 million tourists visited the site, setting a new record. The previous record was in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic, when 1.98 million visitors came.
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