Is Shanghai the most livable or
the most leaveable city?
A heated debate has been sparked with the naming of the eastern metropolis as
the "most livable city in China".
According to a recent survey, the majority of Shanghai natives believe the
city is a good place to live in.
Two foreign
visitors stroll in Nanjing Road, Shanghai's bustling commercial center in
this undated file photo. A recent survey finds that Shanghai is the best
place to live in. [newsphoto] |
One impressed resident, office worker Xu Qian, said: "I enjoy a very
convenient life. You can find whatever you want and the environment is improving
every day."
However, for Li Xiang, who works for a trading company, Shanghai is
definitely not a livable city but a most leaveable city.
"The roads are narrow, the subways are crowded, the air quality is bad and
housing costs are incredibly high," Li said. "And it's really surprising that it
stays at the top of the list."
Li said he understands Shanghai natives want to be loyal to their hometown
but he believes the city only excels in the category of "the best city for
business," and certainly not the category of "most livable city."
Business Watch Magazine and the Horizon Group jointly released the results of
the survey looking for the top 10 most livable cities in China.
According to their findings, the most livable city is Shanghai, followed by
Dalian, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Qingdao, Hangzhou, Guilin, Zhuhai and
Xiamen.
Liveablity factors rated in the survey included convenience of
transportation, pollution, air quality and other less tangible factors reckoned
to make a city more livable.
One of the researchers responsible for the survey, Yao Lan, said the main
reasons Shanghai triumphed were its strong economic position and its efforts to
model itself as an international city.
Guangzhou is attractive for its employment opportunities and business
environment, while Beijing's strengths are its position as an unrivalled
cultural and political centre, she added.
The majority of the livable cities on the list are well-known small resort
cities.
They gained their votes for their cleanness and beautiful scenery, said Yao.
The views of at least one proud Xiamen resident, Wu Tao, gave weight to this
theory.
"Perhaps the first thing a new comer notices in Xiamen are the pleasant
tree-lined avenues, clean streets and free flowing traffic," Wu said.
Xiong Xibei, a university teacher in Guilin, said she was satisfied with
Guilin's position of eighth on the list.
With the development of the local economy, she said, her city will surpass
Beijing and Shanghai in the near future.
