In Western Europe, Athens ranks lowest. A survey by the British magazine The Economist names it the city with the worst living conditions in the region. Athens scored 81.2% out of a maximum of 100, only marginally above the threshold for liveability, and this year again finished in 63rd place, just one position above Santiago, in Chile.
According to the survey, which is carried out every year among 140 cities around the world, the reasons for Athens’ position are a low level of education and serious problems with infrastructure.
At the top of the list, as the best, most humane and most welcoming place to live, whether alone or with a family, is Vancouver, in Canada, for the fifth year in a row. Melbourne and Vienna take second and third place, while Harare, in Zimbabwe, comes last once again.
It is worth noting that, in general, most cities in Western Europe are considered ideal places to live, with an average score above 90%. London, which will host the Olympic Games in 2012, made very little progress, rising one place from 54th to 53rd.
In the USA, New York is in 56th place, while Pittsburgh has the highest score, in 29th place. Los Angeles fell three places to 44th.
In Japan, Osaka, tied with Geneva, takes 12th place on the list, well above Tokyo. In China, Beijing is in 72nd place, having to deal with a number of significant problems, the most serious of which is air pollution, whereas Hong Kong is in 31st place.
