Throughout this stint in the Netherlands I haven't encountered very many homeless persons. There have been a few panhandlers here and there in busier areas of larger cities, but nothing like I'm used to in either American or other European cities.
To see whether this perception was accurate, I looked up the stats: according to Statistics Netherland, only 0.02% of the Dutch population is homeless, compared to about 1% of the U.S. population. In other words, a Dutch city of 500,000 people is likely to have 850 homeless persons, while a comparable American city would have closer to 5,000.
A big reason for this is the strong safety net provided by the Dutch government. For example--and I'm not sure whether it's all residents or citizens only--but anyone making below-median income is eligible for a housing subsidy.
My purpose in posting this here is my contention that transportation plays a significant role in terms of social equality. Someone's level of mobility can seriously impact their ability to meet their needs or improve their circumstances. I saw this firsthand working with chronically homeless adults in Salt Lake as the program I worked for provided bus passes to clients who needed them.
Back to Holland. A thoroughly connected and safe bike network means that all someone needs is a cheap bike to access almost the entire country. Public transportation generally goes wherever (and whenever) you need to go, and quickly. The region where I'm staying (Haaglanden) has a great radial tram network targeted towards average travelers, with a bus system that fills in the gaps to serve those who can't use any of the above. With little-to-no need for a car, both poor and rich are on more equal footing, and that simply has to contribute to solving social problems like homelessness.
It's cool that you can see that first hand.
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