They are right about that. The rest of the list? Not so sure.

After seven years, Melbourne is no longer at the top of The Economist’s The Global Liveability Index, knocked off by Vienna, the perennial runner-up. The main reason for its climb is “improvements seen in stability and safety across most regions in the past year. Whereas in the past, cities in Europe have been affected by the spreading perceived threat of terrorism in the region, which caused heightened security measures, the past six months have seen a return to normalcy.”

The Economist’s 10 Most Liveable Cities

Mid-sized Cities Scored Well

This is an important finding; I have long made the case for what I call the Goldilocks Density. I have described it in the Guardian:

The Goldilocks Density is in the middle, it’s just right.

Vienna in 1st place and Copenhagen in 9 are pure Goldilocks; they are built at a human scale, they are wonderful for walking, transit and bicycles. The Canadian cities are not too big by global standards either; Tokyo is the only monster on the list. It’s nice to see that according to The Economist, Goldilocks rules.

I have never been to Melbourne, but I trust Brent Toderian who doesn’t think it should ever have been Number One on the list, which does not define liveability the way he or I would. According to the EIU:

Important Criteria Missing From Liveability Index

But when you get into the detail, the weights and foci are very different than the TreeHugger view of cities. The index is really all about figuring out how much extra to pay to “employees who move to cities where living conditions are particularly difficult and there is excessive physical hardship or a notably unhealthy environment.” This loads the dice in favour of stability (a full 25% of total) Healthcare (20%) and Infrastructure, (20%) which includes quality of roads and airports, but doesn’t mention pedestrian or cycling. Culture and Environment (25%) lists corruption, censorship and religious restrictions along with “cultural availability” but nowhere do you see parks or amenities or theatres or social life factored in.

The Economist liveable cities list will tell you which cities have the best private schools and where you are less likely to get kidnapped, but won’t tell you where you can have fun, bike to a great park, get the best free public education, meet the most interesting people. Even Vienna, which deserves to be number one for so many reasons, is not the most exciting or vibrant city; It can be rather dull compared to Berlin or Copenhagen.

Creating Walkable Cities

Last year I listed a different set of criteria, Jeff Speck’s from Walkable cities:

  • Put cars in their placeMix the usesGet the parking rightLet transit workProtect the pedestrianWelcome bikesShape the spacesPlant treesMake friendly and unique building facesPick your winners (“Where can spending the least money make the most difference?”)

If these were important criteria to The Economist, Vienna would still top the list, and Copenhagen might well be in second place. And Berlin! It would be up there too. Toronto and Vancouver might be off the list for anyone not on an expat rental subsidy, and Montreal would replace them. What is liveable for The Economist Intelligence Unit is perhaps very different from what most people want, but they got it right about Number One.