LONG BEACH TOWNSHIP, N.J. - Ever wonder what the No. 1 issue is for visitors to the Jersey Shore?
A new poll finds it's where to go to the bathroom.
According to a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday, the beach, boardwalk, and Atlantic City are state residents' favorite destinations for a Jersey vacation.
But the poll showed New Jerseyans overwhelmingly want more bathrooms near the beach.
Eighty-three percent of respondents said the state should require Shore towns to provide restrooms at the beach. They are common at large resorts such as the Wildwoods, Seaside Heights, Point Pleasant Beach, and Ocean City. But some smaller towns don't provide facilities, and others ban food and drink from the sand, making the beaches all but off-limits to anyone except locals.
Women, in particular, said they wanted more restrooms, with 86 percent calling for more toilets. Men were at 80 percent.
"Voters of every stripe want bathrooms at the beach," said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute in Connecticut.
The poll also asked New Jerseyans whether they felt it was easy enough to get to shoreline. The results were split, with 48 percent saying towns impose too many barriers to getting to the beach and 43 percent saying there is adequate access.
The state is rewriting its beach-access rules. It says it will let individual towns set their own policies rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach.
That decision has drawn opposition from many beachgoers, who don't trust Shore towns to ensure the right of everyone to use the beaches.
Bob Martin, the state's environmental protection commissioner, said New Jersey had to act after an appeals court struck down more restrictive rules in 2008 that mandated access points every quarter-mile along the coast, as well as parking and restrooms near the beach.
"We believe it's a fundamental right for all the people of New Jersey to be able to access the tidal waters and beaches," Martin said. "We believe very strongly we're going to have better access as a result of this."
The biggest objection to the status quo comes from people who live near the Shore. Fifty-five percent of this group said there is not enough public access to the water. Urban residents felt the opposite way, with 46 percent indicating there is enough public beach access vs. 41 percent who said more is needed.
The survey queried 1,610 registered voters June 14-19 and had a sampling error margin of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.
Overall, 45 percent of respondents said New Jersey was a fairly good place to take a vacation, with an additional 35 percent rating it as very good.