Portable restrooms for downtown and high-rise sites, planned inside the hoarding line or in permitted right of way.
Fastest: call (888) 351-0294. Or send this and we call you back.
High-rise and downtown site restrooms are units placed close enough to the crew to be used, inside the site perimeter where possible or in permitted right of way where not. The federal headcount table sets the count, and a unit too far from the work does not count as provided.
A downtown construction site leaves little room for anything that is not the building. The lots are small, the frontage is limited and the streets around them carry traffic, pedestrians and the events that fill the city in spring and autumn. Portable restrooms on a site like that have to be placed with the same care as the crane and the materials, because a unit that takes too long to reach is not counted as provided under the federal rule.
The count starts from the crew. The federal table in 29 CFR 1926.51(c)(1) sets one facility for 20 or fewer workers, one toilet seat and one urinal per 40 workers above 20, and one per 50 at 200 or more. The construction site page works through that table in full, and the delivery and pickup page covers how the trucks reach a tight site. This page is about placement: where a unit can sit on a downtown lot, and what the street rules require when it cannot sit on the lot.
The answer depends on the site. A lot that has room inside the perimeter fence can take units within the working area. A lot that has no room may need a unit on the right of way, which brings in the permit and the pedestrian rules. Describe the lot, the fence line and the crew size when you call (888) 351-0294, so the placement can be planned before the crane arrives.
The count follows the crew, using the federal table in 29 CFR 1926.51(c)(1). A small crew needs one facility, and larger crews need seats and urinals set by the table's ratios.
The table sets one facility for 20 or fewer workers. Above 20 workers it calls for one toilet seat and one urinal per 40 workers, and at 200 or more it calls for one toilet seat and one urinal per 50 workers. A widely repeated figure of one toilet per 20 workers does not match the table, and a plan built on that figure will fall short on a larger crew.
Far enough to be used, but not so far that the crew walks away from the work to reach it. OSHA treats a toilet that takes too long to reach as not provided, so the distance is measured in practice, not on a plan alone.
OSHA's standard interpretation letters say that a toilet which takes too long to reach is not provided, and the sense of the rule is that the crew must be able to use the facility within the working day without leaving the work for long. On a downtown lot, that usually means the unit sits inside the fence line near the work area, or as close to it as the right of way allows.
An informal 1993 Justice Department letter says that portable toilets used exclusively by construction personnel are not required to be accessible. The letter is not binding, so the plan should note what applies to the site.
The letter is informal guidance rather than a rule, and it does not bind a site or a court. The sensible course is to plan an accessible unit where the site is open to other people, such as the public using a nearby walkway or a visitor to the building, and to check the requirement for the particular site before the units are placed.
A unit on the right of way needs a Temporary Use of Right of Way permit, notice to 311 at least three days ahead, and a walkway that stays open. Sidewalks should not be closed for more than 14 days without approval.
A Temporary Use of Right of Way permit is needed to close a sidewalk or driveway for work on private property. The approved permit and the traffic-control plan stay on site, and the crew has to show them to the inspector if asked. The permit describes the closure, its dates and the route that pedestrians are sent along.
The price moves with the size of the crew, the number of units, the placement, the servicing visits and any right-of-way work. The provider confirms the figure for the site before work starts.
Crew size and unit count are the first factors. A larger crew needs more seats and urinals under the federal table, and each unit has to be delivered, placed and serviced. A site with several staging points for a tall build needs more units than a single lot, and the plan should show the count for each stage.
Keep units out of the crane zone, the material stacks and the truck route, and never place a unit where a load can swing over it. Do not block a pedestrian walkway or a traffic lane, and keep a clear strip beside any unit on the right of way. Units on a tall build are secured against the wind, and nobody should lift or move a unit by hand. If the placement is close to a live work area, ask the general contractor and the provider to agree the route before the unit goes in.
Count the workers on the site at the busiest shift, including the subcontractors. The table in 29 CFR 1926.51(c)(1) turns that count into a number of facilities and urinals, and that is the figure the plan starts from.
The provider looks at the lot, the fence line, the access gate and the route the truck takes to reach the placement. Where a unit can stand inside the hoarding line, it is placed there. Where it cannot, the plan moves to the right of way.
OSHA treats a toilet that takes too long to reach as not provided, so the placement is measured from the work areas and not from the gate. Units are placed close enough that the crew does not have to leave the work area for long.
The unit is set on firm ground, levelled and secured against the wind, which is strongest around tall buildings. The placement is checked after the first delivery, and any unit that sits in the way of the crane or the trucks is moved before the day.
Servicing is timed to the shift pattern, so that the units are clean at the start of each shift and not only at the end of the week. Units that are not kept sanitary do not count toward the minimum, so the schedule matters for the rule as well as the crew.
When the lot has room within the perimeter, units sit inside the working area and the crew does not leave the site to use them. The units are kept clear of the crane path and the material stacks, and the route to them is marked on the site plan. This is the simplest placement and the one the federal rule is easiest to meet.
When the lot has no room, a unit may need to sit on the right of way, which requires a Temporary Use of Right of Way permit and notice to 311 at least three days ahead. The walkway beside the unit must stay open, the approved permit stays on site, and the traffic-control plan shows where the crew can reach the unit safely.
On a tall build the crew moves up through the floors, and the units are staged at the levels where the crew works most. A unit placed on a lower level needs a clear route for the trucks, and the staging plan changes as the build rises. The provider and the general contractor review the staging together when the structure passes each stage.
Call any hour and explain what is going on. You get a clear price before any work starts.
Downtown Austin has the Capitol complex, busy streets carrying traffic and pedestrians, and events that close streets in spring and autumn. Where a lot has little room, the placement has to be settled with the permitting office and the right-of-way division before the unit is moved in. The permitting office and the right-of-way division are the places to confirm which applies.
The events calendar and the construction calendar overlap downtown. SXSW fills the core in mid-March, and the autumn festival season brings closures and crowds to nearby streets. A site that is active through those months should check its traffic-control plan against the event closures, and its units against the pedestrian routes that the events use.
The large projects in the area are mostly highway and infrastructure work, including the I-35 Capital Express Central corridor and the TxDOT tunnel work beneath central Austin. Those projects are large, and their own plans set the site's requirements. A downtown building job near them still has to meet the federal count and the right-of-way rules for its own lot, and the crew size is the figure the plan starts from.
Portable toilets for job sites in Austin, counted against the federal OSHA table and placed on firm ground the crew can reach.
How a portable toilet is delivered, placed and picked up in Austin, planned around truck access, ground and right of way.
Standing portable toilets for construction and subdivision work that runs for months, on a servicing schedule set for the build.
One portable toilet for a yard event, small park gathering or infill build in Austin, set on a level pad.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
The federal construction table in 29 CFR 1926.51(c)(1) sets the minimum toilets for a crew: one facility for 20 or fewer workers, then one toilet seat and one urinal per 40 workers above 20, and one per 50 at 200 or more.
Closing a sidewalk or driveway for work on private property needs a Temporary Use of Right of Way permit.
The count starts from the crew at the busiest shift and the federal table in 29 CFR 1926.51(c)(1). A crew of 20 or fewer needs one facility, and larger crews need one toilet seat and one urinal per 40 workers above 20, then one per 50 at 200 or more. Subcontractors count toward the crew on the site.
A unit on the sidewalk needs a Temporary Use of Right of Way permit, and 311 must be notified at least three days before a planned closure. The walkway beside it must stay open, with five feet of continuous, undisturbed access, and the approved permit stays on site. Sidewalks should not be closed for more than 14 days without approval.
OSHA treats a toilet that takes too long to reach as not provided, so the test is practical. A crew must be able to use the facility within the working day without leaving the work for long. A unit inside the fence line near the work area is the simplest way to meet that.
An informal 1993 Justice Department letter says that portable toilets used only by construction personnel are not required to be accessible, and the letter is not binding. Where the site is open to the public or to visitors, an accessible unit should be planned, and the requirement is checked for the particular site.
A unit that is not kept sanitary does not count toward the federal minimum. Servicing is timed to the shift pattern so that the units are clean at the start of each shift. If a unit falls behind, the provider should be told as soon as it is noticed so the schedule can be brought back up.
Yes. Units on a tall build are secured against the wind, which is strongest around tall structures, and the placement is checked after the first delivery. Staging changes as the build rises, so the units move with the crew's work areas. The provider and the general contractor agree the staging together.