Police order drunks caught urinating in the street to clean up the mess with mop and bucket Greater Mancherster Police shame revellers spotted relieving themselves Patrol dubbed 'Operation Urination' are armed with mops and buckets Drinkers given the option of cleaning up mess, or face a fine Revellers caught using city centre streets as a public toilet have been ordered by police to pay up - or clean up. Armed with mops, buckets and disinfectant, police took to the Manchester streets this weekend to shame drunks who relieved themselves in the street. Drinkers spotted urinating in public were handed a warning letter by officers from Greater Manchester Police, before being given the choice of cleaning up their own mess or running the risk of an on-the-spot fine. On patrol: Revellers caught using Manchester city centre as a public toilet have been ordered by police armed with mops and buckets, including Police Constable Dave Willetts, to clean up their mess or face a fine Although revellers cannot be fined for simply urinating in the street, GMP said that those who "kick off" when challenged may find themselves having to pay up - £80 for drunk and disorderly or £50 for being drunk in public. The patrol - dubbed Operation Urination - caught four young men between 9pm and midnight. Among them were two football fans who had travelled from Ireland to see their beloved Manchester United play, only to be caught urinating in an alleyway across from the city's Deansgate Locks. The men, aged 22 and 27, were on the way to the Printworks complex of bars and restaurants, and said they simply couldn't wait to use a toilet. Shamed: These two men were spotted by the police patrol, dubbed 'Operation Urination' urinating against walls near to Deansgate Locks, Manchester Tough choice: Those caught relieving themselves by the police patrol are handed a letter before being given the option of cleaning up their mess or having to pay a fine One, who works as an engineer in Ireland, said: 'I've had about 20 pints today so I was bursting. I thought it would be easiest just to nip down here, all guys do it. However, Joan Davis, Labour councillor for the city centre, who accompanied police on the patrol, was not impressed by the excuses. She said: 'Not all guys do it. Many men will plan ahead so there is no need to urinate in the street, and you don't see so many girls urinating in public. Somehow they manage to wait. 'Residents and business owners shouldn't have to live with the smell and sight of urine. 'It's unhygienic and unfair that they have to clean up other peoples" mess.' One business owner with premises in Manchester's Northern Quarter said he faced a constant battle with urination - and even worse - outside the building. Scrub up well: These two revellers spotted urinating near Deansgate Locks chose to scrub the streets instead of running the risk of having to pay a hefty fine He explained: 'Business is lost if clients come to the building and it looks and smells like a toilet. Bluntly, they will not return. GMP will now continue to carry and hand out the letters on their regular patrols over the weekends leading up to the festive season. Although everybody stopped by police agreed to clean up their mess, not all were entirely repentant. A 21-year-old student from Baguley caught urinating in a corner of Castlefield said: 'If there were public toilets around here we wouldn't have to do this. 'If I'm being honest I'd do this again if I didn't think the police were watching. Although I wouldn't ever do it outside someone's house as that's not fair.' Inspector Phil Spurgeon, who led the patrol, said that revellers often used the excuse of public toilet provision when challenged. He added: 'But in my experience most of those people have recently left premises with a toilet or are on their way to one. To put it bluntly, they should tie a knot in it.