To many, Shanghai stands as a symbol of the Chinese mainland's rapid urban success. Yet until recently, thousands of households still carried chamber pots to shared toilets, enduring cramped spaces and harsh winters for daily sanitation.
By the end of September, local authorities completed a monumental push to replace these 'hand-carried toilets,' targeting the final 14,082 homes. This milestone caps decades of meticulous planning and community engagement, transforming old lanes into modern neighborhoods.
One striking example is Pengpu New Village in Jing'an District. Built in the 1950s with outdated Shikumen architecture, its narrow alleys once forced residents like Zhang Cuiying, a 38-year local, to queue outside before dawn amid freezing cold or sweltering heat.
Between 2005 and June 2025, officials demolished aging blocks and rebuilt 2,110 units, merging 282 apartment layouts into 92 standardized types. Every household now has a private kitchen and bathroom, plus shared gyms, pools and nursing homes – amenities unheard of decades ago.
Community leaders turned renovation into a precision art. 'We fight for every centimeter,' says Zhou Xing'an, Party chief of Yangpu's Fuxingdao neighborhood. His custom plans once carved out just enough space for a toilet and shower in under 10 square meters – 'like surgery in a shoebox.'
Small-scale demos sparked wider acceptance. In Hongkou District, when volunteer Huang Yong'an became the first among neighbors to install a toilet in his 9-square-meter room, curiosity turned into demand, sparking dozens of similar upgrades overnight.
Shanghai's success mirrors a broader national push: under the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), China has revamped over 240,000 old communities, benefiting 110 million people across 40 million homes. New elevators, parking slots and childcare facilities are now standard in many districts.
As focus shifts to the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), the city's flush revolution offers lessons in shared governance, precise design and community trust – essentials for any global city aiming to blend heritage with modern living.
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Shanghai flushes out chamber pots as urban renewal gathers pace
cgtn.com
