THE URBAN AUDIT Towards the Benchmarking of Quality of Life in 58 European Cities docx

The Urban Audit was supervised by Marcello Roma and Mireille Grubert of Directorate General for Regional Policies and Gilles Durand and Berthold Feldman of Eurostat.The realisation of th

THE URBAN AUDIT

Towards the Benchmarking of Quality of Life in

58 European Cities

The Urban Audit is supported by the European Commission It is aimed at improving comparative information on urban areas The Urban Audit was supervised by Marcello Roma and Mireille Grubert of Directorate General for Regional Policies and Gilles Durand and Berthold Feldman of Eurostat.

The realisation of the pilot phase of the Urban Audit was entrusted to ERECO under the direction of David Taylor, Cambridge Econometrics, Nick Bozeat, Ecotec, Michael Parkinson, EIUA, and Mireia Belil, Borakasi and including

a network of national and city level correspondents.

Further information on the Urban Audit can be accessed at the INFOREGIO web site

(inforegio.cec.int/urban/audit).

Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication.

Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2000.

ISBN 92-828-9241-7

© European Communities, 2000

Reproduction is authorised, except for commercial purposes, provided the source is acknowledged.

Yearbook 1

Foreword

This is the first edition of the Urban Yearbook It presents the main results of the pilot phase of the Urban Audit The purpose of the Urban Audit is to provide a resource allowing comparisons across national boundaries on conditions in EU urban areas The work has, for the first time, brought together information from 58 major EU cities concerning a wide range of aspects of the ‘quality of life’ in urban areas.

This process has engaged directly the city authorities who were invited by the European Commission to participate Though practice concerning information collection and management varies between and within countries, use has been made of a large number of local data sources, in order to supplement the ‘official statistics’ available at national levels.

To achieve this, close co-operation has been necessary between the European Commission and the cities Many individuals within the cities, in statistical agencies at the national levels, and in other agencies at the local level have contributed to the work Without this active co-operation, the completion of the pilot phase would not have been possible Special thanks are due to the cities of Bilbao and Nuremberg who were invited to ‘test’ the manual and procedures being developed during the pilot phase to discover the ease with which they could be applied to other cities not yet participating in the Urban Audit The statistical results from these cities are not included in the urban Yearbook The advice and feedback will be used however, to inform the future plans of the Urban Audit.

The results of the pilot phase are, we hope, of immediate interest to city authorities and citizens alike However, the value of the information brought together in the pilot phase of the Urban Audit will be much increased if steps are taken to fill the gaps, to update the information, to increase the number of participating cities, to improve the richness of the information in particular domains, and to ensure easy and wide access to the detailed information The European Commission proposes to continue to work with the cities to this end.

The Urban Audit has been directed and managed by Directorate General REGIO, Regional Policy, unit A.1 and Eurostat Other Directorates of the European Commission have advised on aspects of the work The urban Yearbook and other products have been prepared by a team of consultants and researchers brought together under the umbrella of ERECO for the Urban Audit pilot phase The opinions expressed in the Urban Audit products are not necessarily those of the European Commission.

The results of the Urban Audit pilot phase are published in three Volumes.

Volume I provides the first part of the Yearbook with an overview of the results and brief analyses of the apparent differences in results between different types of cities and emerging trends Volume I also presents the main results in a series of comparative tables so that findings may be compared between cities and with the results at the Conurbation/Wider Territorial Unit and national levels.

Volume II, which is the second part of the Yearbook, presents the summary results for each of the 58 cities The presentation of findings allows the reader to see how a particular city compares with the other Urban Audit cities and, if appropriate, the variation between scores at the city and Conurbation/Wider Territorial Unit level.

Volume III presents the Urban Audit Manual, which allows readers to appreciate in detail the way in which the information was collected and compiled during the pilot phase of the Urban Audit.

Yearbook 2

In addition to this publication, the pilot phase of the Urban Audit generated several other outputs, which are publicly available Namely:

- An Urban Audit Web Site (http://www.inforegio.cec.int/urban/audit/) Visitors to the Web Site can investigate

different aspects of the Urban Audit process and have access to the results contained in this urban Yearbook and Individual City Audits The Web site also provides access to the bibliography of parallel work concerning urban indicators Where applicable, hyperlinks are provided from the Urban Audit Web Site to the sites of participating cities.

- Individual City Audits for each of the 58 Urban Audit Cities These Individual City Audits elaborate on the

information summarised for each city in this document and are ‘virtual’ annexes to the Yearbook They include maps on population density and land use illustrating the City and WTU/Conurbations boundaries used in the Urban Audit They are available via the Urban Audit Web Site.

Yearbook 3

The Urban Audit Volume I: The Yearbook

FOREWORD ……… 1

OVERVIEW ……… 5

• Introduction ……… ……… 7

• Policy Context ……… 7

• City Coverage ……… 7

• Indicators ……… 10

• Spatial Level – City and Conurbation level – Wider Territorial Units – Sub-city Level ……… 14

• Feasibility ……… 15

• Key findings ……… 16

1 Population ……… 18

2 Nationality ……… 19

3 Household structure ……… 20

4 Labour market and Unemployment ……… 22

5 Income, disparities and poverty ……… 24

6 Housing ……… 25

7 Health……… 26

8 Crime ……… 27

9 Employment ……… 28

10 Economic activity ……… 29

11 Civic involvement ……… 31

12 Education and Training Provision ……… 32

13 Level of educational qualifications ……… 33

14 Air quality and Noise ……… 34

15 Water ……… 35

16 Waste management ……… 36

17 Land use ……… 37

18 Travel patterns ……… 38

19 Energy use ……… 40

20 Climate/geography ……… 41

21 Culture and recreation ……… 42

Subcity variations ……… 43

• Annex 1 Detailed results of analysis informing the Overview ……… ……… 45

• Annex 2 Methodological aspects ……… 75

City Coverage………

Indicators ………

Spatial Level ……….

City ………

Wider Area ………

Sub-City Level ……….

Data flow and data base ……….

Testing the Urban Audit Manual ………

76 76 77 77 77 78 79 79 COMPARATIVE SECTION……… 81

• Introduction ……… 82

• Notes of caution ….……… 82

• Socio-economic aspects ……… 84

1 Population ……… 84

1.1 Population and change ……… 84

1.2 Population Age Structure ……… 87

2 Nationality ……… 90

3 Household Structure ……… 93

Yearbook 4

4 Labour market and Unemployment ……… 96

4.1 Activity ……… 96

4.2 Unemployment ……….… 99

5 Income, Disparities and Poverty ……… 102

5.1 Household Income and Disparities ……… 103

5.2 Poverty ……… 105

6 Housing ……….… 108

6.1 Type of Housing ……….… 108

6.2 Type of Tenure ……… 110

6.3 Housing Costs ……… 113

7 Health ……….…… 116

8 Crime ……… 119

9 Employment Change ……… 122

10 Economic Activity ……… 125

11 Civic involvement ……… 128

11.1 Elections ……… 128

11.2 Municipal Budget ……… 131

• Levels of Training and Education ……… 134

12 Education and Training Provision… ……….… 134

12.1 School Performance ……… 134

12.2 Pre and Post School Provision ……… 137

13 Level of Educational Qualifications ……….……… ……… 140

• Environment ……… 143

14 Air Quality and Noise ……… …… 143

15 Water……… …… 146

16 Waste Management ……… 149

17 Land Use ……… … 152

18 Travel Patterns ……… …… 155

19 Energy Use ……… …… 158

20 Climate ……… …… 161

• Culture and Recreation ……… ……….…… 163

21 Culture and Recreation ……… … 163

21.1 Music and cinema ……… 163

21.2 Museum, Theatre and Libraries ……… 166

21.3 Sports ……… 169

• Sub-City variations ……… 172

OVERVIEW

6

Yearbook: Overview 7

Introduction

This is the first urban Yearbook to be published by the European Commission It has been informed by the results

of the pilot phase of the Urban Audit This pilot phase began in May 1998 and was funded under the aegis of Article 10 of the ERDF Regulation which enables the support by the European Commission of innovative measures Directorate General REGIO for Regional Policy and EUROSTAT are responsible for managing the Urban Audit Other Directorates of the European Commission have advised on the choice of information to be included in the Urban Audit The pilot phase was undertaken by ERECO on behalf of the European Commission The overall purpose of the Urban Audit is to enable an assessment of the state of individual EU cities and to provide access to comparative information from other EU cities It is intended that the process will facilitate the exchange of information amongst cities.

Policy Context

There is demand amongst policy makers at all levels for an assessment of quality of life in Europe’s cities To meet this demand, there is a need for comparable information Such information helps to identify priorities, to target actions and to assess progress Such information is currently very limited.

The Commission Communication ‘Towards an Urban Agenda in the European Union (COM(97)197)’ identified this need for comparable information and proposed a two-fold approach.

First, the Urban Audit to ‘measure the quality of life in our towns and cities through the use of a simple set of urban indicators and a common methodology’ This would be undertaken with a view to these indicators being updated and, in the future, providing an assessment of the impact of urban policies on the development of urban areas.

Second, in parallel with this approach, EUROSTAT, in co-operation with national statistical institutes, would process the ‘local’ level information on cities and urban agglomerations and harmonize information systems and definitions.

The subsequent Commission Communication ‘Sustainable Urban Development in the European Union: A Framework for Action’ published in October 1998 and debated at the European Urban Forum in Vienna, November

1998, also identified, as one of 24 actions ‘Improving Comparative Information on Urban Conditions’.

City Coverage

The 58 cities included in the Urban Audit pilot phase were identified by the European Commission on a systematic and objective basis The largest cities (by population size within their administrative boundaries) within the EU member states have been included The main exceptions to this principle are: the exclusion because of their large scale of London and Paris; and, in order to ensure a good geographical spread across the EU and to cover a significant percentage of the population in each country, some cities from the smaller EU countries were included even though they have smaller populations than some of those cities not included from the larger countries.

Yearbook: Overview 8

POPULATION OF URBAN AUDIT CITIES, CONURBATIONS AND WTU AND NUMBER OF SUB-CITY AREAS

CITIES CONURBATIONS WTU SUB-CITYCOUNTRY Population

(1996) Conurbations

1 Correspondingpopulation Wider territorialunits 1 Corresponding

population Number ofSub-city

areas (withincity level)

Lyon 414000 Lyon : Urban

Community, 55communes

Bordeaux 217871 Bordeaux :

UrbanCommunity, 27communes

Nantes 265000

(1990)

Nantes : UrbanDistrict, 15communes

1See page 14 for explanations of Conurbations and Wider Territorial Unit

Yearbook: Overview 9

POPULATION OF URBAN AUDIT CITIES, CONURBATIONS AND WTU AND NUMBER OF SUB-CITY AREAS

CITIES CONURBATIONS WTU SUB-CITYCOUNTRY Population

(1996)

Conurbations1 Corresponding

population

Wider territorialunits 1

Correspondingpopulation

Number ofSub-cityareas (withincity level)Lille 172138

(1990) Lille : UrbanCommunity, 86communes

(1997)

33Glasgow 611660

Manchester 427693

(1997)

Manchester 2571849 66Cardiff 318282

Yearbook: Overview 10

The combined population of the 58 cities (at the city administrative level) is 42.6 million Taking into account the

wider territorial areas (Conurbation and Wider Territorial Unit) for which information has been collected for 27 cities,

the total population within the Urban Audit cities is 70 million.

Indicators

The Terms of Reference for the Urban Audit pilot phase identified 33 ‘indicators’ grouped under five headings2.One

of the main criteria emphasised in the selection of indicators was the likelihood of information being available.

During the pilot phase, the indicators were refined more precisely so that, as far as possible, information could be

collected on a comparable basis for the 58 cities This process involved: a review of existing relevant work;

discussions amongst those involved in the Urban Audit pilot phase work, including correspondents in each member

state and representatives from participating cities; and, a detailed assessment of the practicality of obtaining

information to inform the 33 Terms of Reference ‘indicators’.

As a result of this work, the following refinements were made :

- The indicators were regrouped into 21 domains reflecting aspects of urban ‘quality of life’ The grouping

offered the practical advantage that because, by and large, the information required to inform the indicators

within each domain is available from a small number of sources, and usually different from the sources for

other domains, the wide ranging data collection work could be managed more easily.

- A full list of indicators was defined within the 21 domains For most variables forming part of the indicator a

preferred ‘standard’ definition was given However, scope was also provided for minor revisions to be made to

the definitions if this would enable the generation of ‘useable’ indicator scores.

- A system was devised so that the following information was recorded for each variable used to generate the

indicator scores: the date to which it refers; any differences to the ‘standard’ definition; any differences to the

spatial boundary to which the indicator applies; and the dataset used to source the information and its

characteristics.

- Information to inform all the indicators was, where possible, obtained for three points in time (1981,1991, and

1996).

- Where appropriate, comparable information at the national level was collected This process assists the

interpretation of results in that Urban Audit users can better judge the extent to which differences in indicator

scores between the 58 cities are a consequence of national differences.

During the Urban Audit pilot phase, a methodology was developed for collecting information to inform these

indicators All available information sources at national, regional and local levels have been investigated and

where appropriate used Account has been taken of the variety of data sources and definitions used in different

contexts so that useful comparisons can be made.

2 These had been informed by the study ‘L’offre et la demande en matière de statistiques urbaines’, Michel Poulain, EUROSTAT Working Papers, March 1997

1 Population Total population with distribution by sex and age (13 age groups)

Total population change (by sex and age)Percentage of the Population aged below 16 and above the national retirement age - Demographic Dependency Index

2 Nationality Nationals as a proportion of total population

Other EU nationals as a proportion of total populationNon-EU nationals as a proportion of total population

3 Household structure Total number of households

Average size of HouseholdsPercentage of households that are one person householdsPercentage of households that are lone parent householdsPercentage of households that are lone pensioner householdsNumber of unemployed (ILO Labour Force Survey)Unemployment rate (by sex)

Percentage of unemployed who are male/femalePercentage of unemployed who have been unemployed continuously for more than one yearPercentage of unemployed who are under 25

Employment/population ratios (male-female-total)

4 Labour market and

Unemployment

Activity rate (male-female-total)Household income, median and average income for each quintileMale/Female earnings, Full-time/Part-time earnings, median and average earnings for each quintileRatio of first to fifth quintile earnings

Percentage of households receiving less than half of the national average household incomePercentage of households without cars

5 Income, disparities and

Useful living area per person (m2)Percentage of households buying or owning their own dwellingsPercentage of households that are social housing tenantsPercentage of households that are private renting tenants

6 Housing

Number of conventional dwellingsPercentage of households living in housesPercentage of households living in apartmentsPercentage of households living in "other" dwellingsLife expectancy at birth for males and femalesInfant mortality rate: 0-1 year per 1000 birthsLow birth rate : Number of children born weighing less than 2.5 kg (or national definition of low birth weight) per1000 births

7 Health

Mortality rate for individuals under 65 from heart diseases and respiratory illness

8 Crime Total number of recorded crimes per1000 population per year

Recorded crimes against people per 1000 population per yearRecorded crimes against commercial and residential properties per 1000 population per yearRecorded crimes against cars (including thefts of and from vehicles) per 1000 population per year

9 Employment Employment by sector-male/female, part time/full time, by sector (Nace Rev.1)

Percentage change in employmentGDP per capita at city level (if available) or at the regional level

10 Economic activity

Number of companies with headquarters in the city quoted on the national stock marketNet level of business registrations (new registrations minus deregistrations per year)Proportion of net office space that is vacant

Number of tourist overnight stays in registered accommodation per yearNumber of air passengers

II CIVIC INVOLVEMENT

Percentage of registered electorate voting in European, national and city Elections For each of the last three EuropeanParliament Elections; and for each of the last three national elections; for each of the city elections (nearest dates to the lastthree national elections)

Percentage of the resident population of voting age eligible to votePercentage of the eligible electorate registered to vote

Percentage of young (aged less than 25 years ) eligible electorate voting in city electionsPercentage of elderly (above retirement age) eligible electorate voting in city electionsPercentage of elected city representatives who are women

11 Civic involvement

Annual expenditure of the municipal authority per residentAnnual expenditure of the Municipal Authority per resident as a proportion of GDP per capitaProportion of Municipal Authority income derived from: local taxation; transfers from national government; charges for servicesand "other"

III LEVELS OF TRAINING AND EDUCATION

Number of crèche places (public and private provision) per 1000 populationPercentage of students not completing their compulsory educationPercentage of students completing compulsory and achieving the national minimum standardPercentage of students completing compulsory but not achieving the national minimum standardPercentage of the age cohort (i.e total number of students registered for the last year of compulsory education in the referenceyear) that continues education and training after leaving compulsory education

12 Education and Training

Percentage of the resident population – male/female - who have completed tertiary education(first stage) leading to firstuniversity degree or equivalent (ISCED level 6)

Percentage of the resident population – male/female – who have completed tertiary education (second stage) leading to a graduate university degree or equivalent (ISCED level 7)

14 Air Quality and Noise Winter Smog: Number of days SO2 exceeds 125µg/m3 (24 hour averaging time)

Summer Smog: Number of days Ozone O3 exceeds 120µg/m3 (8 hour averaging time)Number of days per year that NO2 concentrations exceed 200mg/m3 (1 hour averaging time)Proportion of the population exposed to outdoor noise levels above 65 db (24 hour averaging time)Number of determinations (total number of annual tests on all parameters

on drinking water quality) which exceed the prescribed values, as specified in the Directive 80/778/EEC - 'Directive relating tothe quality of water intended for human consumption'

Consumption of water (cubic metres per annum) per inhabitant

15 Water

Percentage of dwellings connected to potable drinking water supply InfrastructurePercentage of dwellings connected to the sewerage treatment systems

16 Waste management Amount of solid waste collected within the boundary (domestic and commercial) tonnes per capita per annum

Proportion of solid waste (domestic and commercial) arising within the boundary processed by landfill, incinerator, recycledGreen space to which the public has access (sq meters per capita ) Percentage of the population within 15 minutes walkingdistance of urban green areas

Percentage of the urban area unused and in main land usesPercentage of the urban area subject to special physical planning /conservation measures

17 Land use

Population density -total resident population per square kmMode of journey to work : rail/metro, bus, tram, car, cycle, walkingCharacteristics of all travel by residents (purpose, distance and mode of travel)

18 Travel patterns

Number of cars registered within the specified boundary per1000 populationRoad accidents resulting in death or serious injury per 1000 populationAverage number of occupants of motor cars

Total energy use by fuel type (coal, petrol, electricity, natural gas, fuel oil)Total energy use by sector (transport, industry, domestic, commercial [services])Percentage of final energy consumption by different sectors ( transport, industry, domestic, commercial)Electricity consumption per capita (toe)

Gas consumption per capita (toe)

19 Energy use

CO2 emissions per capitaNumber of days of rain per month (averaged over one year)

20 Climate/Geography

Average number of hours of sunshine per day (averaged over one year)

V CULTURE AND RECREATION

Number of cinema showings and annual attendance per residentNumber of cinema seats

Number of concerts and annual attendance per residentThe number of theatres and annual attendance per residentNumber of museums and annual visitors per residentThe number of sports facilities and annual users per resident

21 Culture and Recreation

The number of public libraries and total book loans per resident

Yearbook: Overview 14

Spatial Level

The indicator scores have been calculated at the city level corresponding to the normal administrative area for the

58 participating cities For 27 cities, information has also been collected at the Wider Territorial Unit or Conurbation level Whenever possible in all cities, information has also been compiled at the sub-city level.

City and Conurbation level

The primary focus of the Urban Audit has been on the “city level” as defined by the main administrative areas under the jurisdiction of an elected body and on the conurbation where the urban area has its own administrative entity.

Wider Territorial Units (WTU)

In order to facilitate possible comparisons, where “local authority areas adjoining a city partake significantly in the life of the city” (Terms of Reference), a Wider Territorial Unit comprising a combination of administrative areas was identified.

The general approach used to define the 20 WTU was that the wider areas should fulfil either of the two criteria below :

That the administrative areas each contiguous with the city administrative level have a population density equal to

or greater than 500 persons per square kilometre;

That the proposed group of administrative areas corresponds to a build-up area with less than 200 metres between two built units.

Furthermore the total populations of the city and administrative areas within the WTU were at least 50% greater than the population of the city.

Sub-City Level

For a small number of indicators, mainly those concerning socio-economic aspects, indicator scores have been calculated for a total of 2500 sub-divisions of the cities The main purpose of the sub-city analysis is to estimate the apparent level of disparities in conditions between parts of the Urban Audit cities.

More particularly, the Terms of Reference for the Urban Audit pilot phase indicated that the Urban Audit should

“enable city authorities to gather precise information on possible ‘pockets of concern’ within the city which could lead to serious internal disparities” The objective was to ‘pinpoint major disparities in terms of social cohesion’ between districts.

There are considerable variations amongst the Urban Audit cities in the ways in which cities are normally subdivided for administrative and/or statistical purposes However, as far as possible a common approach has been adopted to the assembly and analysis of information at the sub-city level This has involved the collection of information for all sub-city areas of population in the order of 10,000 and where possible the assembly of further more detailed information for 2 sub-city areas.

Yearbook: Overview 15

Feasibility

The pilot phase of the Urban Audit has demonstrated, for the first time, the feasibility of obtaining and presenting information on a consistent pan-European basis for a wide range of indicators at the city administrative level, the wider urban area, and for sub-city areas.

This has been achieved through the active co-operation of the cities invited by the European Commission to participate Information has been assembled from a wide variety of sources Whilst many of the chosen indicators have been informed by national data sources, information compiled at the local level has also been extremely important with respect to recreation and culture, civic involvement, and levels of education and training provision,

as well as aspects of economic conditions.

The wide variety of variables for which information was sought, the three points in time and three different spatial levels posed a major challenge However, for most indicators, the information was obtained for the majority of cities Furthermore, at least one city had sufficient information to complete in its entirety the information requested

in each domain Only the domains of energy and travel patterns stand out as having been particularly difficult to complete The lack of information on household income is also disappointing.

There are many issues of definitions that limit cross-national comparability and the confidence with which generalisations can be drawn However, taken as a whole, the Urban Audit pilot phase has demonstrated the strong potential that exists for European comparative urban information.

Yearbook: Overview 16

Key Findings

The philosophy of the urban Yearbook is that it should present information in an objective but comprehensible manner so that the figures can “speak for themselves” Thus readers of the urban Yearbook can use the information to inform their interpretation of the situation affecting EU cities in general and the comparative position of particular cities To assist this process the broad findings of the Urban Audit are reviewed below for each domain and for the sub-city level analysis.

In the review of key findings, the cities have been classified:

- by size at city level in three categories (above 1 million, above 500,000, below 500,000 inhabitants)

- by geographic location: northern and southern,

- by geographic location: central and peripheral, and

- by capital and non capital cities.

The table below presents the cities within each category.

Size of the City Geographical location Large

Above 1 million (Above 500,000) Medium (Below 500,000) Small Northern Southern Central Peripheral

Capital Cities

Berlin Frankfurt Leipzig Berlin Madrid Berlin Valencia Berlin

Hamburg Essen Dresden Hamburg Barcelona Hamburg Seville ViennaMunich Stuttgart Graz Munich Valencia Munich Malaga BrusselsCologne Brussels Antwerp Cologne Seville Cologne Helsinki CopenhagenVienna Valencia Copenhagen Frankfurt Saragossa Frankfurt Athens MadridMadrid Seville Lyon Essen Malaga Essen Thessalonika HelsinkiBarcelona Saragossa Toulouse Stuttgart Marseilles Stuttgart Patras AthensRome Malaga Nice Leipzig Lyon Leipzig Naples Rome

Milan Helsinki Strasburg Dresden Toulouse Dresden Palermo Dublin

Naples Marseilles Bordeaux Graz Nice Graz Bari LuxembourgBirmingham Athens Nantes Vienna Bordeaux Vienna Dublin Lisbon

Turin Lille Antwerp Athens Antwerp Cork StockholmPalermo Thessalonika Brussels Thessalonika Brussels Lisbon

Genoa Patras Copenhagen Patras Copenhagen Oporto

Amsterdam Florence Helsinki Rome Madrid Braga

Rotterdam Bari Strasburg Milan Barcelona Glasgow

Lisbon Dublin Nantes Naples Saragossa Edinburgh

Leeds Cork Lille Turin Marseilles Stockholm

Glasgow Luxembourg Dublin Palermo Lyon Gothenburg

Stockholm Oporto Cork Genoa Toulouse

Braga Luxembourg Florence NiceBradford Amsterdam Bari StrasburgLiverpool Rotterdam Lisbon BordeauxEdinburgh Birmingham Oporto NantesManchester Leeds Braga LilleCardiff Glasgow RomeGothenburg Bradford Milan

Liverpool TurinEdinburgh GenoaManchester FlorenceCardiff LuxembourgStockholm AmsterdamGothenburg Rotterdam

BirminghamLeedsBradfordLiverpoolManchesterCardiff

Yearbook: Overview 17

The following paragraphs are based upon information presented in Annex 1 to the overview and in the comparative section The comparative tables give scores and averages based upon the latest year for which information is available in each city (i.e 1996 or near equivalent, or 1991 or near equivalent) The information in Annex 1 gives averages for 1996 or near equivalent, as well as averages for 1991 and for 1981.

For each domain, the main variations in the average scores on selected indicators of cities grouped within different categories (size of the city, geographical location, capital/non capital) using available data at the city level for 1996

or near equivalent are presented.

Where appropriate ordinal (higher/lower/same) comparisons are also made between the city and conurbation/wider territorial unit level scores and those at the national level Again 1996 or near equivalent year are used.

The trends over time in indicator scores are illustrated in two ways First, for selected indicators, the average score for cities for which information is available is given for three points in time 1996 (or near equivalent year), 1991 and

1981 As the cases for which information is available vary between the years these results need to be viewed with caution Second, for each city and conurbation/ wider territorial unit, for which data are available for more than one point in time, the proportion of cases with each direction of change (increasing, decreasing, stable) has been calculated The information used to determine the direction of change for each case is the difference between scores for the longest period over which information is available In any case, the findings on changes over time need to be viewed as indicative Information on trends at the individual city level, which in general terms is reliable,

is available from the Web Site (Section Results-City by City).

Yearbook: Overview 18

SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASPECTS

1 Population

Urban Audit city population levels stabilising; populations at WTU/Conurbation level are increasing

In the last two decades, around half of the Urban Audit cities

have gained population and half have lost residents Amongst

the cities with WTU/Conurbations, the population have tended

to decline slowly at the city level but increase within the

WTU/Conurbation level Population decline at the city level was

greater amongst large, southern, central and capital cities, but

the decline has slowed The majority of Urban Audit cities

experienced a decline in the eighties whilst only a minority did

so in the nineties Fourteen cities experienced a reversal in

population trends, from a decline in the eighties to an increase

in the nineties Only four cities experienced the opposite.

Population Change in cities with WTUs/Conurbations (millions)

1981 1996 or latest

Wider Territorial Unit/ ConurbationCity Level

The trends in population over the last two decades indicate stable levels of population within the boundaries of the cities with similar numbers of cities experiencing growth and decline However, much of the decline in cities population that characterised the nineteen eighties has been arrested and the populations within the wider urban areas of which the cities form part have, in most cases, grown.

Urban Audit city populations are relatively young but the number of elderly is increasing

Population age structure in Urban Audit

Yearbook: Overview 19

2 Nationality

Nationals

The Urban Audit cities are becoming more international and cosmopolitan.

Nationality in all Urban Audit cities

%

Around 90% of the Urban Audit cities resident population are nationals The proportions range widely and are normally higher at the WTU/Conurbation level Compared with the national level, nearly all cities have lower proportions of nationals than the countries as a whole The proportions of nationals are typically higher in southern, peripheral and non capital cities Nearly 84% of cities have experienced a decline in the proportion of nationals.

Other EU nationals

Of the non-national population, around one third are from other

European Union countries and two thirds are non-EU nationals.

The proportions of other EU nationals are higher at the city level

and in small, northern and central cities Over three fifths of the

cities have higher proportions of other EU nationals than the

countries in which they are located.

Proportion of other EU nationals

3.73.9

2.9

%

Non-EU nationals

The majority of non nationals are from outside the European Union.

The proportion of non-EU nationals are higher at the city level in

large, northern and central cities In more than four fifths of the

cities, the proportion of non-EU nationals are higher than in

WTU/Conurbations in which they are located In over 90% of

cities, the proportions of non EU nationals have increased.

Proportion of non-EU nationals

6.64.6

Yearbook: Overview 20

3 Household Structure

Household size

The Urban Audit cities have relatively small households and they are getting smaller.

On average, there are 2.3 persons per household in

the Urban Audit cities Over four fifths of cities have

smaller households on average than their countries as

a whole Households are typically larger in southern

and peripheral cities Nearly all cities have

experienced a decline in household size.

Average size of households

2.32.8

2.5

persons

One person households

The Urban Audit cities have more one person households compared with national level.

households

Lone parenthouseholds

Proportion of one person households

Lone pensioner households

Nearly 15% of households are lone pensioner

households The proportions are greater in large

central and non capital cities The majority of cities

have experienced increases in the proportions but this

is more marked at the WTU/Conurbation than city level.

Proportion of lone pensioner

households

14.713.3

14.4

%

Yearbook: Overview 21

Lone parent households

Lone parent households are increasing.

Nearly one in twelve households are lone parent households.

The proportion is higher in small and in peripheral cities The

majority of cities have higher proportions of lone parent

households than at national level At the city level, 84% of cities

have experienced an increase in the proportion of lone parent

Just over two thirds of the population of working age in Urban

Audit cities are in work or seeking work The proportions are

lower in southern cities Half of the cities have higher activity

rates than the national levels and the majority higher activity

rates than in 1981 (Activity rate is the number in work or

seeking work as a proportion of the population of working age).

The majority of women of working age are in the workforce.

The proportions are much lower in southern cities but overall,

they have grown considerably since 1981 and in almost all cities

the female activity rates have increased Three fifths of the

cities have higher female activity rates than at the national level.

49.3

%

Population in employment

Around three fifths of the Urban Audit city level working age

populations are in work The proportion is lower in southern and

peripheral cities The proportion has declined in more cities than

it has increased although the average levels have increased

between 1981 and 1996.

Proportion of population of working age in employment

Yearbook: Overview 23

Unemployment

Urban Audit Cities bear the brunt of unemployment, and long term unemployment, but fewer young people are out

of work than at the national level.

Unemployment averages over 8% and is higher in the

medium sized cities, in southern cities and capitals In nearly

two thirds of cities, it is higher at the city than at national

levels For the WTU/Conurbation level, three quarters have

higher unemployment rates than the national level In three

quarters of cities, the rate has increased over the last two

Long Term Unemployment

Nearly two in five of the unemployed are long term

unemployed The proportion is similar throughout the EU

and to the national pictures The trends indicate some

decline in the proportion of long term unemployed in the

nineteen eighties, but an increase in the nineties.

Proportion of unemployed who are long term unemployed

Around one in five of the unemployed are aged under 25

years The proportion is similar across Europe and varies

little between cities of different size The proportions are

lower in capitals and, for over four fifths of cities, the

proportions are lower than for the countries as a whole In

almost all cities, the proportion of unemployed who are

under 25 has decreased over the last two decades.

Proportion of unemployed who are

under 25 years

19.738.4

25.3

%

Yearbook: Overview 24

5 Income Disparities and Poverty

Few general conclusions can be drawn concerning the results of the Urban Audit in this domain because of the limited data available and the extreme caution which needs to be applied in making cross-national comparisons.

of 7 cases), the city level figures were higher than national level figures.

Poverty

Around a quarter of households have less than 50% of the average national household income.

As regards poverty, it was decided not to rely upon national definitions of poverty because they would not allow valid comparisons and because some countries do not have national definitions.

Information was collected to inform three indicators:

First, the proportion of households receiving less than half of the national average household income This averaged at 23.2% but was only available for 19 cities.

Second, the proportion of households reliant upon social security This averaged 19.4% for the 24 cities for which it was available A wide range of results was obtained illustrating the variation in definitions between countries In 63% of the 16 cases where comparisons can be made with the situation at the national level, the proportions were higher in the Urban Audit cities.

Third, the proportion of households without a car This averaged 42.6% for the 29 cities for which it was available and varied from 25.8% to 76.4% This indicator should however, be viewed with particular caution In cities with good quality public transport, households may choose not to own a car and there may in all cases be a tendency for equivalent income households in urban areas to be less likely to own cars than those in rural areas.

Yearbook: Overview 25

6 Housing

Housing type

Two thirds of Urban Audit city residents live in apartments.

Two thirds of the residents of Urban Audit cities live in

apartments In the majority of cities, the proportion

has declined Typically lower proportions of the

households live in apartments at the

WTU/Conurbations level than at the city level The

proportions are higher in southern and capital cities.

Where comparisons can be made with the situation at

the national level, all the Urban Audit cities have

higher proportions of households living in apartments.

Proportion of households living in appartments

Home ownership is increasing

More than two fifths of households own outright or are

buying their own dwelling The proportion varies from

7% to 82.1% and is higher at WTU/Conurbations than

city level For three quarters of cities, it is lower than

at national level The variations between cities tend to

reflect national variations although there are marked

inter-city differences in some countries Amongst the

cities for which trend information is available, 95%

have experienced a growth in the proportion of “owner

Others

Housing and income

Houses typically cost nearly six times household income.

The average ratio of house prices to annual household income was 5.8:1 The ratio varied between 2.4:1 and 13.3:1

The average ratio of weekly social housing rents to weekly household income was 0.1: 1.

Housing space

The average of the estimates of useful living area per person for the Urban Audit cities was 32 square meters.

Yearbook: Overview 26

7 Health

The Urban Audit cities are generally improving on all health indicators except low birth weight.

Life expectancy

The average life expectancy at birth for the Urban Audit cities

for the latest year it has been estimated (usually 1996) is 76.8

years The average for males is 73.3 years and the average for

females is 80.3 years In all of the cities where trend

information is available life expectancy has increased.

Trends in Life expectancy in all Urban Audit cities

73.370.5

80.377.5

1981 1996 or latest

Infant Mortality

Infant mortality rates declining but relatively high in Urban Audit cities.

The average infant mortality rate (death from birth to one year

old per 1,000 births) is 6 for the Urban Audit cities In 63% of the

cities for which a gender split is available the infant mortality

rate is higher for boys than for girls In 96% of the cities, there

has been a decrease in the infant mortality rate Two thirds of

cities have higher infant mortality rates than their countries as a

Low birth weight

The average rate of low birth weights (per 1,000 births) is 67 for

the Urban Audit cities There are however, differences in the

definition applied in national contexts For 63% of Urban Audit

cities, there had been an increase in the rate of low birth weight.

Rates of low birth weight are lower in the majority of cities than

Early deaths

The average rate of ‘early deaths’3 (early deaths as a proportion

of all deaths) was 5.3% For 88% of the cities, there had been a

reduction in the rate of early deaths Similar numbers of cities

had rates above as rates below national averages.

3 deaths under 65 due to heart diseases and respiratory illness per year.

Yearbook: Overview 27

8 Crime

Crime rates are higher in cities, especially northern and capital cities.

The average crime rate amongst the Urban Audit

cities was 110 recorded crimes per year per 1,000

population Crime rates are higher in northern and

capital cities There were considerable variations in

this figure, which in part reflect the different ways in

which crime has been recorded Three fifths of

cities have experienced an increase although there

has been a stabilisation of crime rates in the

nineties Almost all of the cities where comparisons

could be made have total crime rates greater than

the national rates in their countries.

Total recorded crimes

110.096.0

115.2

per 1000 population

Crime rates have risen in most cities but overall rates have stabilised.

Comparisons between the rates of different types

of crime are particularly problematic because of

the different definitions and recording systems

applied However, for those cities for which trend

information is available, 63% have experienced an

increase in crimes against people, 57% an

increase in crime against property and 54% an

increase in crime against cars over the longest

period for which data was available.

Crimes against people

9.19.4

5.4

per 1000 population

Crimes against property

48.246.6

20.4

per 1000 population

Crimes against people are more frequent in large and capital cities, crimes against property are more common in large, northern and capital cities, crimes against cars show less variation by size or location of city.

of the cities have a higher proportion of employment in services than their countries as a whole Nearly all cities have experienced a decline in employment in industry and an increase in employment in services.

Proportion of employment in

industry

23.530.4

The proportion of employment that is female has increased.

The average proportion of employment that is female for the

Urban Audit cities is 41% Amongst the cities for which trend

information was available, 90% have experienced an increase

in the proportion of female employment The proportions are

higher in capital and northern cities.

Proportion of female employment

Overall employment is declining.

The annual average (mean) change in total employment for the Urban Audit cities has been –0.3% In almost all cases where data were available at city and WTU/Conurbation levels, average annual employment change at WTU/Conurbation level was either increasing more or declining less than at city level.

Yearbook: Overview 29

10 Economic activity

Gross Domestic Product

There are marked northern/southern and central/peripheral variations between Urban Audit cities in economic activity and GDP per capita is higher at city level than at national level in the majority of cases.

The estimated average GDP per capita for the 44 cities for which information is available is 18,983 (euro 1998) For 61% of these cities the GDP per capita is higher than the national average It is markedly higher in small, northern and capital cities.

Company Headquarters

The numbers of company headquarters have increased in two thirds of cities.

The average number of headquarters of companies in each city quoted on the national stock exchange is 51 The numbers are higher in large, northern and central and capital cities With one exception, the numbers are higher for the capitals included in the Urban Audit in comparison with the non capitals in the same countries In two thirds of cities, the numbers of headquarters have increased.

Businesses

In all cases at city level, net business registrations were positive.

The average number of net business registrations per year is 1934 for the Urban Audit cities for which information

is available There are differences in the procedures used to record registration and deregistration and the indicator is of course sensitive to the size of the city.

The average proportion of office space that is vacant is 10.7% for the Urban Audit cities for which information is available.

Tourism

Nearly all Urban Audit cities have experienced growth in tourism and air travel.

The average number of tourist overnight stays (per year per

resident) in registered accommodation is 4.1 At city level, the

majority of cities have lower rates of tourist stays than the

countries as a whole Nearly three quarters of cities have

experienced a growth in overnight stays by tourists Tourist

numbers are relatively high in small, northern and capital

cities.

Tourist overnight stays in registered

accommodation

4.13.8

2.8

per resident per year

Yearbook: Overview 30

Air passengers

Nearly all cities (94%) have experienced a growth in air passengers.

Of the 58 Urban Audit cities, all have an airport, except

Braga The average number of air passengers per year for

these airports is 9.7 per resident Passenger numbers are

higher in medium sized, northern, central, and capital cities.

Whilst the increases in air travel are not just a function of the

economic activity within the city (in most cases the airports

serve regional or national hinterlands) the very high rates of

growth both offer improved accessibility to residents and

bring potential environmental disbenefits.

Yearbook: Overview 31

CIVIC INVOLVEMENT

11 Civic involvement

European, National and City Elections

Voter participation in Urban Audit cities is relatively low and declining.

The average proportion of the registered

electorate voting in European Parliamentary

elections (at the 1994 election) was 56.9% For

two thirds of cities, the proportions are lower than

at national level Participation is greater in capital,

large and southern cities.

The average proportion of the registered

electorate voting in national elections (at the last

election) was 74.5% For three quarters of cities,

the proportions are lower than at national level.

Voter Participation in all Urban Audit

cities

60.8%

56.9%

74.5%

The average proportion of the registered electorate voting in city elections (at the last election) was 60.8 % It ranged from 20.9% to 93.7% Participation was higher in capital and southern cities In two thirds of cities, there had been a decrease in the proportion of the registered electorate taking part in city elections.

Political representation

Increasing numbers of women have been elected as city representatives.

Over a quarter of elected city representatives are women (27.8%) In no city do their numbers constitute the majority Over three fifths of cities have experienced a clear increase in the proportion of women representatives.

Municipal Income and Expenditure

There are marked variations in the scale of municipal budgets and sources of finance between countries This reflects the variations in competencies and powers and arrangements for government at the urban scale.

The annual municipal expenditure per capita is 2,419 euro (1998 price) It ranges one hundred fold from 93 euro to 9,535 euro.

The proportion of municipal income arising from local taxation averages at 28%, while transfers from national government account for an average of 31.1% and charges for services account for an average of 19.2%.

Yearbook: Overview 32

LEVELS OF TRAINING AND EDUCATION

12 Education and Training Provision

Crèche provision

Crèche provision is increasing but southern cities lag behind.

On average, there were 23 crèche places per 1000

population The numbers are lower than national levels

in a small majority of cities but increasing Provision in

northern, peripheral and capital cities is particularly

high.5 Overall, similar numbers of crèches are provided

in the public and private sectors although the

proportions vary markedly between cities.

Total places in crèches

23.118.0

18.5

per 1000 population

Post-school provision

University places are concentrated in cities.

There are almost six times as many places at further

and higher education establishments as in crèches.

The figures are especially high in northern and

non-capital cities and have been increasing in the majority

4 Comparability problems arise because of variations in the duration of compulsory education between countries and differences in thedefinitions of minimum qualifications

5Variations in the age at which school starts also influence rates of crèche and pre-school provision

6 The concept of further education is however interpreted differently in different contexts

Yearbook: Overview 33

13 Level of Educational Qualifications

Educational levels are rising Cities lag behind at lower educational levels but most have more graduates than countries as a whole.

There are wide variations between cities in the levels of education and training qualifications of the population 21.6% of the resident populations of the cities have completed lower secondary education Similar numbers (22.6%) have completed upper secondary education The proportions are higher in northern, central and capital cities but for nearly three quarters of cities the levels are lower than at the national level In around 90% of cities the proportions have increased An average of 11.8% (at city level) have completed tertiary education to degree equivalent standard The proportions are higher in southern and peripheral cities and non capitals and in more than 60% of cases higher at the city than national level Generally a larger proportion of males than females are qualified at the higher levels The proportion of graduates has risen markedly in almost all cities.

Proportion of residents that have

completed upper secondary education

Yearbook: Overview 34

ENVIRONMENT

14 Air Quality and Noise

Winter smog (SO2) is decreasing but summer smog (O3) is persistent in Urban Audit cities.

Winter Smog

The average number of days per year of “winter smog” is

1.3 for the Urban Audit cities The number of days varies

from 0 to 25 Information from 35 cities indicates no days

of “winter smog” in the most recent year reported Of the

cities for which trend information is available, only 4% have

experienced an increase in the number of days per year.

Nine cities registered no “winter smog” over the time period

The average number of days per year of “summer smog” is

18.5 The number of days varies from 0 to 66, with 8 cities

indicating no days of “summer smog” in the most recent

year reported Of the cities for which trend information is

available, 60% have experienced an increase in the

number of days per year Only 3 cities registered no

“summer smog” over the period covered.

Noise levels

Only 12 cities provided estimates of the proportion of population exposed to outdoor noise levels above 65 dB This

is insufficient to draw generalisations for the Urban Audit cities as a whole.

The data suggest that only a minority of cities experience “winter smog” and for those that do, the situation is improving “Summer smog” is much more widespread, and a persistent problem Excessive NO2 concentrations occur in the majority of cities and are frequent in many, although their prevalence is generally decreasing.

Air quality and noise is an important aspect of quality of life and has a distinctive urban dimension due to the concentration of emissions from, in particular, transport and industry The scores on the indicators used in the Urban Audit however need to be viewed with extreme caution Firstly, different standards have been applied in different contexts Secondly, the results are influenced by the number and location of monitoring stations and sampling methods Thirdly, the scores may be influenced by geographical factors as well as a result of local pollution.

Yearbook: Overview 35

15 Water

Water consumption

Water consumption in Urban Audit cities is relatively low and declining.

The Urban Audit cities consume on average around 93

cubic meters of water per resident each year.

Consumption is lower than national levels in two thirds of

cities Southern and large cities use more water.

Overall, water consumption has declined in three

quarters of cities.

Consumption of water (per annum)

93.3109.7

Water quality is improving.

The average proportion of determinations which exceeded the concentration values in EU Directive 80/778/EEC was 2.2% Water quality at the city compares favourably with that at the national level in most cases Peripheral and small cities have poorer water quality For most cities water quality is either stable or improving, although average figures for exceedencies have increased.

Dwellings connected to water supply and sewerage treatment infrastructures

Deficiencies in water supply and sewerage treatment infrastructure are declining.

The average proportion of dwellings connected to potable drinking water supply infrastructure was 94.9% Three fifths of cities have experienced an increase, and a further 18% had remained at the same high levels over the period considered.

The average proportion of dwellings connected to sewerage treatment systems was 95.2% 57% have experienced

an increase in connections, while a further 14% had remained at the same high levels over the period considered.

Of the four indicators discussed above, drinking water quality is perhaps the most pertinent to the quality of urban life There are however, differences in the way in which water quality is monitored, for example some measures are taken at the taps and some at the points of supply, and differences in the standards applied Also the EU standards relate to several aspects of water quality, some of which are arguably more critical to quality of life than others, in that they have health implications.

The average amount of waste (domestic and

commercial) collected each year per person in the

Urban Audit cities was 556 kg In nearly two thirds of

cities, the amount of waste (at city level) was lower

than the national levels The levels of waste were

higher in small, northern and capital cities In over two

thirds of cities, the amount of waste had increased.

However, the averages for 1981, 1991 and 1996 point

to an increase followed by decline.

Total solid waste collected (per annum)

555.9604.8

400.2

kg per capita

Waste processing

Landfill is the most common form of processing but incineration and recycling are increasing.

Three fifths of solid waste was deposited as land fill.

Less than one third of solid waste was processed by

incineration The average proportion of waste

processed by recycling was 12.5% For 70% of cities

for which trend information was available, the amount

of waste incinerated and/or recycled had increased.

The data illustrate marked variations between cities,

in the context of general increases in waste arisings

and the proportion of waste incinerated and/or

recycled.

Proportion of solid waste incinerated and/or recycled

36.133.2

The distinction between the methods of processing does not, however, necessarily have implications for the quality

of life For example, an incineration system with poor safety and environmental standards may be worse for the quality of life than a land fill system.

Green space to which the public has access

The apparent increase over time in average green space area per person may be misleading due to the inclusion

in 1996 of one city where green space is exceptionally abundant.

The average amount of green space to which public has access was 26 m2 per person (at city level) It tends to be higher in northern, peripheral and capital cities and has increased in most cities.

Land Use

Information was obtained for a minority of cities on the proportion of the urban area in 8 “urban” land use categories including the proportion of urban areas in green spaces which averaged 12.9% The proportion of land in residential use averaged 27%.

Whilst all of these land use indicators are of relevance to the quality of life, there are difficulties in interpreting them For example, the proportion of land within a particular land use within a city depends upon the characteristics of the city boundaries The building blocks for the Urban Audit are administrative boundaries, as such they may not correspond with the physical boundaries of the urban areas.

Yearbook: Overview 38

18 Travel Patterns

Amount of travel

Travel is increasing especially for non work related journeys.

Information on the amount of travel (trips and distance) by purpose of travel was available for 17 of the 58 Urban Audit cities Differences in the categories of purpose used limit the extent to which generalisations can be drawn However, the figures indicate that three quarters of travel is not work related and journeys to work are on average only 22% of all trips The trend information shows an increase in travel particularly for “social entertainment”.

Public transport

Use of public transport for travel to work is low and declining.

The average proportion of journeys to work by public

transport (rail/metro/bus/tram) was 25.9% at the city level

and just 18.8% at the WTU/Conurbation level Public

transportation was used more in peripheral and capital

cities Over 80% of cities had experienced a decline in

the proportion of journeys to work by public transport In

all cases of decline, there had been corresponding

increase in the use of cars for journeys to work.

Proportion of journeys to work by

public transport

25.925.6

Car ownership is higher in small cities and increasing.

The average number of cars registered within the city

boundary (per 1000 population) was 408 The numbers

are higher in central and large cities Car ownership levels

are lower in over three fifths of cities than at national

level Over 90% of cities had experienced an increase in

car registration In six cities, there had been an increase

during the eighties followed by a decline suggesting that

car ownership levels may have “peaked”.

Cars registered within the city