London slides down world table

Tube strikes grind London to a near halt

London's traffic congestion and transport problems have been blamed for it losing ground in a worldwide survey comparing quality of life in over 200 cities.

Increases in robbery and theft were also blamed for the UK capital being ranked in 40th position, down from 35th last year.

The best-performing cities have reliable, integrated transport systems that run efficiently and on time

Yvonne Traber

London and Paris were classed as the top cities in the European Union for recreation, based on the range of restaurants, theatres, cinemas and leisure facilities.

The highest ranking city in the British Isles was Dublin, at 35th, while Birmingham and Glasgow were joint 59th.

The survey of 215 cities, by consultants William M Mercer found that New York, Los Angeles, Washington DC and Sydney were the top international cities for recreation facilities.

Traffic headache

London Mayor Ken Livingstone has said transport is the biggest single issue facing the capital.

During his inaugural speech last July, he said London needed a transport system on a par with Paris, Tokyo and New York if it were to compete internationally.

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He has now appointed the American Robert Kiley, who used to run the New York subway, to the daunting task of improving the performance of London's tubes and buses.

Strikes over tube safety brought commuters to a halt in February, while an official report last year suggested that Londoners were more likely to die from traffic pollution than in a road accident.

In a bid to tackle the traffic jams, Mr Livingstone has proposed charging drivers £5 a day to enter the centre of the capital.

By contrast, the survey said Copenhagen, Helsinki in Finland and Stockholm in Sweden were the EU's most efficient capital cities for public transport and traffic management.

Containing congestion

"The best-performing cities have reliable, integrated transport systems that run efficiently and on time," said Yvonne Traber, senior researcher at William M Mercer.

Sunny Sydney is tops for leisure

She said: "Many of the smaller, compact cities, including a number in northern Europe, have been more successful at managing their transport networks and containing traffic congestion."

The quality of life analysis was based on personal safety, health, education, entertainment, transport and other public services.

On transport and traffic management alone, London came 55th out of 215, with Glasgow, Dublin and Birmingham all joint 37th.