1. Main results of the Urban Audit pilot phase Mireille Grubert
EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR REGIONAL POLICY Urban Actions and URBAN Community initiative
Main results of the
Urban Audit
pilot phase
Mireille Grubert
g/mireillegrubert/exposés/Luxembourg What AU MGr

2. Summary
1. What is the Urban Audit?
2. Cities and indicators
3. Outputs
4. Main results

3. What is the Urban Audit? A pilot exercise
In the context of cohesion policy
Collection of indicators of quality of life in 58 of the biggest European cities

4. Organization A core team under the ERECO consortium
A network of 14 national correspondents
May September 1999
Published in May 2000

5. 2. Cities and indicators The cities
The biggest cities, except London and Paris
About 15% of national population

7. Four spatial levels Administrative city Conurbation
Wider territorial unit (WTU)
Sub-city level

8. The indicators Socio-economic aspects Environment
Education and training
Citizenship
Culture and leisure

9. 21 domains

10. Methodology Local data sources if possible Time series
Comparing with national level

11. Quality check
on data sources
on comparability

12. 3. Outputs The yearbook The Urban Audit manual
Overview
Summary individual city audit per city
Comparative section per indicator
The Urban Audit manual
The web site

13. The overview

14. Time series and spatial comparisons

15. Summary city Audit

16. Infrastructure

17. Population density

18. Land use

19. Comparative section

20. Sub-city level

21. Other outputs The database The surveys of perception
storage of information should be improved
The surveys of perception
comparison with “objective” results
perception of main factors
The surveys of cities
constraints on participating
resource commitment
preferences for the future

22. The Audit Day In Paris-Créteil, last September
400 representatives of Cities
Commissioner Barnier and Ministers took part
Strong support to go further

23. 4. Main results
The aim of the Urban Audit is to allow all stakeholders in urban policy to use the information.
This pilot phase already allows a few analysis and comments.

24. Employment
In order for the EU to adjust to the employment level in Leeds, an additional 80 million jobs would be required

25. Proportion of population of working age
There are large differences in the proportion of the population of working age in employment. Urban Audit cities are key sources of employment in their regions.

26. Activity rate female and total
Differences in the proportion of the population in
employment reflect more or less variation in female activity rates.

27. Unemployment rate
A better situation in cities than at regional level in most cases of objective 1 regions

28. GDP per capita (euro)
There are major disparities in GDP per capita between cities overall and within some countries, with a range of about €5 to €51 among the 44 cities with available data.

29. Population density (inhabitants per km2)
If increasing densities continue in combination with higher living standards, increasing demand for space may create severe land use pressures.

30. Participation in municipal elections and municipal expenses
There is only a poor correspondence between the
municipal budget per capita and the tendency of the electorate to vote.

31. Cars registered per 1000 population at city and national level
Rates of ownership are no longer a direct function of income, as demonstrated by Sweden and Italy. If car ownership across the EU reached the level it is in Rome, 117 million more cars would be required.

32. Disparities within cities
Often more important than disparities between cities.
Example of unemployment: up to 10 times higher in the worst affected parts compared to the least affected ones.