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50 Times People Spotted Stupid Design Decisions In Public Places And Just Had To Share (New Pics)
Good design is aesthetic and pleasing. But truly great design is deeply empathetic—it always puts the user first. And nothing could be more important than empathetic designs when it comes to public places. They’re meant to be for the public’s benefit after all!
However, the world is full to the brim with examples of poor design. From truly awful restrooms that anyone would think twice about using to unfriendly restaurant seating, disruptive decor, and stairwells that go nowhere. Our team here at Bored Panda has collected some of the worst public place design decisions to prove to you that everyone deserves better. Scroll down for the crème de la crème of bad interiors and upvote the pics you loved to hate.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Not A Good Carpet Choice For Stairs If You Ask Me
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#2
This Mirrored Ceiling In Our Bathroom At Work
#3
This Picture In The Hotel Lobby Looks Like Pubes
#4
Waiting To Engage In A Dining Experience At My Favorite Taco Establishment
#5
It's Not Even Angled Or Anything To Guide The Drainage. It Just Dribbles Onto The Floor
#6
Best Item To Hang Above Your Head At Dinner? Ah Yes, A Chandelier Of Knives
#7
The Lighting At This Bar
#8
It Looks Like The Hotel Cart Ran Someone Over And Is Dragging Their Blood Through The Halls
Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago
Happens a lot when you’re trying to use the cart to move the body when it’s still dripping blood, or a limb ends up hanging over the side. Not that I’d know that from experience…
#9
Toilet Door In A Pub, London
#10
The Seats Doesn't Match With The Desks In The Lecture Hall I Take My Exams In. This Is The One Of The Engineering Buildings
#11
This Door Handle
#12
A Chandelier Would Really Tie All This Florescent Lighting And Ceiling Tiles Together
#13
Bowling Alley Located In Bangkok. Cracks Me Up When The Ball Rolls Out From That
#14
You Have To Go Up The Stairs, And Then Down The Stairs To Get To The Door
#15
All Toilets Must Be Centered In The Middle Of The Classroom So Kids Eating Their Snacks Three Feet Away Can Bare Witness To Their Classmates Defecating
#16
These Coffin-Shaped Door Windows In This Hospital
#17
The Clock In My School's Band Practice Room
#18
This Pillar
#19
When Life Tries To Give Me A Sign
#20
The Positioning Of The Mirror And Urinals In Our Office Building. This Is The Main Hallway
Karen Krause 3 years ago
Easy to track down co-workers for a meeting. "Hey John, there you are! Boss needs to see you in Conference Room A"
#21
This Ticket Gate At My School
#22
Imagine Walking Out Of That Cabin, And There's A Guy Doing His Business Right In Front Of You, Blocking Your Way. So You Have To Wait There Until He Is Done, And You Can Pass
#23
Semi-Transparent Bathroom Stall Doors
#24
My Friend's New Locker Has A Huge Pipe Running Through It
#25
These Lights At The Mall
#26
Hotel In Iceland. It's Supposed To Tell You Which Rooms Are On Which Floor
#27
They Couldn't Put It In Between The Mirrors?
#28
This Disastrous Thing In A German Restaurant
#29
This Horrific SpongeBob Stained Glass Panel At The Dentist
#30
These Taco Bell Self-Serve Kiosks
Mohsie Supposie 3 years ago
Just giving you practice of being that position a couple of hours after eating there!
#31
I Love Not Being Able To See The Person I'm Eating Dinner With
#32
The Stairs To Nowhere
#33
An Extreme Entrance To School Gym
#34
One Of The Drawers At My Doctor's Office That Always Annoys Me
#35
These Bathroom Sinks Looks Similar To Urinals
#36
This Clock. Can You Tell Me What Time It Is?
#37
Maybe Wait Until You're Home
Šimon Špaček 3 years ago
Somebody heard about "public restrooms" and didn't understand what it means.
#38
My School Bought Modern Stuff. The Projector Was Placed Under The Screen
#39
There's Not Enough Room For The Cart To Get By
#40
These Stairs In A College I Visited Had People Confused
#41
This Wrestling Painting At A High School
Mimi La Souris 3 years ago
for once, i don't see anything sexual. i see a dying person hug by his best friend and asking him to take care of little Billy Bob for him. i see to much westerns when i was a little child :D
#42
I Have No Idea What Floor I'm On
#43
This TV In Front Of The Evacuation Plan
#44
The Main Hallway's Roof In Our School Is Made Out Of Plexi-Glass So It's Like We Are In A Sauna. We Can't Stay In Classrooms During Breaks, So We Have To Burn Here
#45
This Busy Ice Cream Shop In Seattle Put Their Menu On A Mirror So It's Impossible To Read
#46
This Sink In The Toilet Of A Restaurant In Amsterdam. It Seems It's Suppose To Look Like That
#47
Bathroom Mirror At A Bar In Italy
#48
These Red Lights Leaking Into The Screen
Ken Beattie 3 years ago
I'm hoping that's because someone accidentally forgot to turn them down once the movie started.
#49
A Table For Two, Please
#50
I Went To Walgreens, And All The Drinks Are Like This. You Can Wave Your Hand To See Pictures Of The Drinks In Each Case, But You Would Know What's Sold Out Once You Open It
#51
Hair-Themed Handrails
#52
This Map I Found At A Local Bar
Raven Sheridan 3 years ago (edited)
I had no idea that Africa, Britain, Germany, India and Japan are all part of the same continent. 🤔
#53
Architectural Engineering Building, Faculty Of Engineering, Cairo University
aashi chaudhari 3 years ago
It rotates clockwise then anticlockwise like a witch making potions. That or it's an example
#54
The Floor At This Barbershop
#55
This McDonald's Column Doesn't Even Touch The Ceiling
#56
This Privacy Door In A Public Bathroom. Private See Door?
#57
This Door Slides Shut Onto A Light Switch
#58
The Shower Walls At My Gym
#59
At Work
#60
Any Idea What To Expect There?
Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago (edited)
Many potty training toddlers, as well as many of those who should be, achieve this level of art.
#61
When Hotel Makes Snapchat Filters A Reality
#62
Offices Were Recently Remodeled, And Here's How Our Window Looks Like Now
#63
Yeah, You Can Have Some Soap. You'll Just Have To Jump For It
Hippopotamuses 3 years ago
If only there was a metal panel, or something similar that it would adhere to.
#64
My Seat In The Movie Theater
#65
The Elevator Safety Placard In This Hotel
Ken Beattie 3 years ago
This is the sort of sign you'd expect to be easy to read. As such I'm kinda surprised there is no regulations that govern the appearance of the sign. Rules like "solid coloured background and high contrast lettering".
#66
Whoever Sits In These Seats Is Gonna Have A Hell Of A View
#67
Just Put It In Front Of The Entrance, No One Will Notice
#68
At My School
#69
This Socket In The Train
#70
The Marbling Of These Floor Tiles Makes It Look Like Someone Pooped All Over The Floor
#71
In A Room Built For Showing Projections, All Of The Lights Turn Off Except For One
#72
At This Hospital, You Just Stick Your Hand In The Trash For A Little Sanitizer
#73
What A Great Table
#74
Almost Every Female Bathroom At My University Has This Narrow, Twisty Staircase
#75
Getting Mixed Messages From My College Wall
#76
This Is On Our Wall In The School
#77
Wheelchair Accessible
#78
Interior Design Of This Bus
#79
Almost Half As Good
#80
Bathroom At A Pizza Place. 2 Toilets Are Divided By A Wall That Doesn't Reach The Doors. Where My Spouse Is Standing Is Just A Gap Where You Can Have A Bathroom Neighbor
#81
I'm 5'4" And Can't Check My Makeup In These Bathroom Mirrors
#82
This Wall-Mounted "Clock" At A Local Restaurant
#83
This Restaurant's Wooden Bathroom Sink
#84
A Support Pillar In The Middle Of The Isle. There's A Dead End, So You Have To Leave Your Shopping Cart Here And Go Around To Take Stuff
#85
These Chairs In The Statue Of Liberty Cafe
#86
It's Like You Didn't Even Try To Measure
Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago (edited)
Someone’s not really good with dimensions and measuring. And placement, like three letter further over.
#87
This Stall Door That Hits Anyone Standing At The Sink Washing Their Hands
#88
My School Has A "Ceiling Fan" But It's A Regular Fan That They Nailed To The Ceiling
#89
This Hospital Room TV Placement
#90
Owner Of This McDonald Really Loves This Painting
#91
This Poster At My Office Building. Someone Doesn't Know How Braille Works And How Deaf People Read
#92
This Clock In My Disability Service's Study Room
#93
In The Event Of A Fire, Find The Camouflaged Door
#94
This Escalator Fails To Go All The Way
#95
Entertaining TV Placement
#96
All You Have To Do Is Hop Over The Rail To Bypass This Door
#97
It Fits Perfectly
#98
The Mirror At The Men's Bathroom At My School
#99
The Bathroom Mirror In The Gym
#100
Do You Know What This Back Rest Needs? Buckles. At McDonald's
Blue Bunny of Happiness 3 years ago
When you run out of glue, nails and duct tape to attach the cushions
#101
Structural Post In Front Of Urinal
#102
Universal Orlando In The Main Entrance. Gets Me Every Time
Stardust she/her 3 years ago
This is the type of figure they’d give you in math to try and prove some random s**t about the triangles that are formed
#103
My School With Very Inspiring Words
#104
This Mirror In The Hotel I'm Staying
#105
Stranger Was Looking At Me On The Toilet For A Few Seconds. Why Are Bathroom Doors Like This?
#106
This Pipe Was Installed In A Way, That You Have To Move Your Head To The Side While Washing Your Hands. Additionally, The Sink Is Very Low
aashi chaudhari 3 years ago (edited)
Very low? Honey that's for lord farquad (Dunno his spelling)
#107
The Seat Reclines, Which Is Great. But This Fence Blocks The View Of The Screen, Which Is Not Great
#108
The Swivel Trays At This Movie Theater Blocks The Cup Holders
Ken Beattie 3 years ago
At least with this one, if you're using the swivel tray you could put the drink on it as well.
#109
A Non-Existent Elevator In My School
#110
The Smaller Door Handle Needs To Be Pressed Down For The Door To Open
Mike Fitzpatrick 3 years ago
It may be a perspective thing, but it looks like it should unlock just fine.
#111
University In Olomouc, Where You Can't Open The Window Properly
Blue Bunny of Happiness 3 years ago
Saves on buying those security/safety catches that stop windows opening fully
#112
This Panel Cutouts Exactly The Size Of The Outlets. People Have Made Adjustments As Needed
𝐿𝑜𝒷𝑒𝓁𝒾𝒶∠( ᐛ 」∠)＿ 3 years ago
To be fair the outlets in which you cant fit your charger in were probably invented by satan
#113
This Bathroom Mirror Completely Blocks Your Face While Standing In Front Of It
#114
Measure Twice And Cut Once, Or Measure Once And Cut A Hole In The Wall
#115
This Drawing At The Bar. I Think She Is Supposed To Smell Fresh Coffee Seeds, But It Looks Like She's Crying Blood
#116
I Saw This Carpet Tile While Waiting In The Airport
#117
This Bathroom Has An Artificial Rock Outcropping Where They Stash The Plunger
Ken Beattie 3 years ago
Artificial or real? Maybe it's a genuine boulder that they left in place?
#118
This Outlet At My University
Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago
Maybe at some pout there was something like a lighted sign hanging there that need it?
#119
My High School Science Department Lights
#120
This Hotel Bathroom Has Paintings Of Corn Rather Than Mirrors
#121
Let's Just Put A Wall Here
Rob Chapman 3 years ago
Clearly a temporary wall, you can see how thin it is where the pipe passes through. Probably some remodeling going on.
#122
I Mean, It Still Works
#123
How This Even Happened?
Paul Scheermeijer 3 years ago
Temp wall.. construction work on other side for longer period of time....
#124
These Uncomfortable Seats On A Train
ShellsBells 3 years ago
At least they have more cushion and look more sturdy than the ones on Spirit Airlines.
#125
These Buttons In The Elevator
#126
At My New Job
Nick Szalai 3 years ago
Yep! At my work as well. Painters didn't remove the air freshener to paint.
#127
These 4 Theater Seats With 3 Cupholders
#128
I'm Not A Contractor Or Interior Designer But, I Think There's A Better Way
#129
These Stairs Were Built Around The Pillar
#130
This Flooring
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What do you think ?
Brainmas 3 years ago
Stopped at a big rest stop/vista point in California to use the bathroom and the stalls were super short. A lady next to me stood up at the same time as I did and we just looked at each other and just started cracking up. The walls ended at like shoulder height. So weird. I don't understand why we can't just have a little privacy!
David A Paterson 3 years ago
And so the staff can remove people who have ODed or suicided without breaking the door down.
Load More Replies...
Melissa Harris 3 years ago (edited)
It should be againt fire code (and might actually be) to arrange store aisles with supporting pillers blocking them. It's a potential danger in case of emergency evacuation and is likely discriminatory to those that use mobility assistance devices. It's not like the architect's, engineers and interior layout designers of big box stores don't know where they're going to require a piller; or where the shelves, racks, etc will be.
Brainmas 3 years ago
Stopped at a big rest stop/vista point in California to use the bathroom and the stalls were super short. A lady next to me stood up at the same time as I did and we just looked at each other and just started cracking up. The walls ended at like shoulder height. So weird. I don't understand why we can't just have a little privacy!
David A Paterson 3 years ago
And so the staff can remove people who have ODed or suicided without breaking the door down.
Load More Replies... Melissa Harris 3 years ago (edited)
It should be againt fire code (and might actually be) to arrange store aisles with supporting pillers blocking them. It's a potential danger in case of emergency evacuation and is likely discriminatory to those that use mobility assistance devices. It's not like the architect's, engineers and interior layout designers of big box stores don't know where they're going to require a piller; or where the shelves, racks, etc will be.
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