Vienna takes Melbourne’s title of best city to live in

VIENNA has dislodged Melbourne for the first time at the top of the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) Global Liveability Index, strengthening its claim to being the world’s most pleasant city to live in.

The two cities have been almost neck-and-neck in the annual survey of 140 urban centres for years, with Melbourne clinching the title for the past seven editions.

This year, a downgraded threat of militant attacks in western Europe, as well as the city’s low crime rate, helped nudge the Austrian capital into first place.

Vienna regularly tops a larger ranking of cities by quality of life, compiled by consulting firm Mercer.

However, it is the first time it has topped the EIU survey, which began in its current form in 2004.

At the other end of the table, Damascus retained last place, followed by the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka and Lagos in Nigeria.

The survey does not include several of the world’s most dangerous capitals, such as Baghdad and Kabul.

“While in the past couple of years, cities in Europe were affected by the spreading, perceived threat of terrorism in the region, which caused heightened security measures, the past year has seen a return to normalcy,” the EIU said in a statement.

Osaka, Calgary and Sydney completed the top five. London ranked 48th.