The Netherlands has 500 public toilets nationwide, including 350 urinals.
Paris, by comparison, has 750.
Patient advocacy organizations describe this as a “toilet desert.”
The Numbers Tell the Story
A recent survey shows that 85 percent of Dutch residents believe there should be more public toilets.
Around two-thirds regularly experience inconvenience because they can’t find a toilet to use.
21 percent of Dutch residents sometimes skip activities because they’re afraid they won’t find a toilet.
One in five people plan their day around infrastructure that isn’t there.
Amsterdam Is Working on This
Amsterdam had just nine official toilets for both men and women inside the ring road as of last year.
The city is spending €4 million on public toilets for women.
The Court of Audit says cost is the main reason there aren’t more public toilets. The city needs to build 25 to 30 more facilities to meet the council’s standard.
Implementation will follow.
Most Municipalities Score Poorly
228 Dutch municipalities scored below 5.5 out of 10 on toilet-friendliness.
Most municipalities are working on this.
Fewer than 16 percent of toilets in public areas, like train stations, pass the Dutch Toilet Organization’s fit-for-purpose test.
Standards exist.
People Have Found Workarounds
Four in 10 Dutch men said they’d simply pee “in the wild” if desperate enough.
A quarter of women would do the same.
The Medical Reality
Millions of people in the Netherlands have gastrointestinal or liver conditions.
The MDL Fonds has launched a national reporting point called Restroom Refusal to officially document incidents in which people are denied access to toilets.
This Isn’t Just a Dutch Problem
The United States has just eight public toilets per 100,000 residents, according to a 2021 report.
This is an international problem.
A UK study found that 20 percent of people don’t feel able to go out as much as they’d like to because of bathroom access. For those with medical conditions, this rose to 43 percent.
Over half of people deliberately drink less water because there aren’t enough public toilets.
Future Planning Is Under Discussion
In 2040 there will be 5 million over-65s in the Netherlands.
They will all have to go.
Planning for this is still under discussion.
