A COUNTY council is paying €30 each time somebody spends a penny in a superloo.

Carlow County Council spends a massive €750 a week to maintain the public toilet in Bagenalstown.

The population of the rural town pay 25c for the privilege of using the facility.

But figures show that on average about 25 people a week use the superloo in the town which has a population of 2,500.

The automatic toilet cubicle was installed on the Fairgreen in 2006 to replace the public toilets in Market Square which were demolished when the new credit union was built.

Councillors felt a public lavatory was necessary for locals and visitors alike and that the superloo would be vandal proof.

Carlow County Council director of services Seamus O'Connor confirmed that electricity and rent for the superloo amounts to €750 per week, while at 25c a go it takes in an average of just €6.25 per week.

Local authorities all over Ireland lease or hire superloos at a cost of around €35,000 a year.

Irish Independent