29palms

This is on top of Been voted No.3 in 2009 as in the 'Worlds Most Liveable City" Poll.


From The Age

Melbourne pips Sydney again in livability stakes
Paola Totaro
June 18, 2009

Sydney's passionate car culture has pushed its livability ranking well below Melbourne in this year's race of the world's top 25 cities - although the Victorian capital has been warned it must do "more about its urban sprawl."

But according to the chic global design and lifestyle magazine, Monocle, if Melbourne manages to improve its "buckling" transport system, the Victorian capital will soon "be pushing its way to the top of our list".

Sydney, says Monocle, may be blessed by nature, have an enviable lifestyle and a thriving restaurant scene which shows Europe "the meaning of service". But its "cultural life is a bit patchy" and it is "cursed by an incompetent council" that stymies all opportunities that sweep into the city.

Melbourne on the other hand nurtures its entrepreneurial brands, has a thriving literary and cultural life, values its distinct neighbourhoods and exudes self confidence. It is let down only by its sprawl and “buckling train network that has staff handing ice creams out to par-boiled passengers”.

The Quality of Life list, launched two years ago by Tyler Brule, founder of Wallpaper magazine, nominates Zurich as the world’s top city, just pipping last year’s winner, Copenhagen, to the post. None of the cultural or fashion meccas – Milan, New York or London – made the top 25 list this year.

Italy also failed to make the list for the third year running, its cities plagued by "chronically late transport", traffic jams and inefficient bureaucracies.

The magazine ranks cities not just on usual livability measures such as the cost of housing and infrastructure but also tries to provide a sense of what makes big cities truly "great". Its reviewers looked at the aesthetic of the built environment, the efficiency of bureaucracies, whether you can eat late at night and the safety and comfort of walking the streets.

"It goes beyond the basic economic and social aspects of a city, identifying often looked over factors that can bring happiness and ease to everyday life. Aspects such as a well-tended local bar, shopping hours, and access to green space make it the only quality of life index of its kind", Brule said.
The full ranking for Monocle’s Quality of Life 2009 is:

1. Zürich
2. Copenhagen
3. Tokyo
4. Munich
5. Helsinki
6. Stockholm
7. Vienna
8. Paris
9. Melbourne
10. Berlin
11. Honolulu
12. Madrid
13. Sydney
14. Vancouver
15. Barcelona
16. Fukuoka
17. Oslo
18. Singapore
19. Montréal
20. Auckland
21. Amsterdam
22. Kyoto
23. Hamburg
24. Geneva
25. Lisbon

Kalenge

If it's a Sydney v Melbourne thing then it does depend on which survey you read.

Monocle magazine doesn't quite have the same clout as the surveys done by The Economist and Mercer.

• Mercer has Sydney 10th, Melbourne 18th, and Perth 21st.
• The Economist has Melbourne at 3rd, Perth 5th, and Sydney 8th.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_Most_Livable_Cities

But who cares about inter city rivalry - if you're in Australia you're doing well

Billabong

No surprise to me that there is not one English city in the top 25

Deancm

And Paris beats Melbourne.

leftfield

What a crock of ..

bigAPE

"Worlds most ... city" is always very subjective and the ranking changes from publisher to publisher.

Personal I just like Melbourne and enjoy living here.