Common Current has recently released a report[pdf link] rating America's 50 largest cities based on their livability with expensive gas prices. Quality of mass transit, density of housing (or amount of sprawl), amount of petroleum consumed for home heating, and number of teleworkers all factor into the equation.

As gas prices increase, the importance of carectomies rise as well. Transportation represents the key criterion, but oil heating has moved cities like Boston and New York down slightly in their rankings. Here's the list of the top ten and the worst ten cities from the study:

Best Cities to Live In:
1. San Francisco
2. New York
3. Chicago
4. Washington, DC
5. Seattle
6. Portland, OR
7. Boston
8. Philadelphia
9. Oakland, CA
10. Denver

Worst Cities to Live In:
41. Virginia Beach, VA
42. Forth Worth, TX
43. Nashville, TN
44. Arlington, TX
45. Jacksonville, FL
46. Indianapolis, IN
47. Memphis, TN
48. Louisville, KY
49. Tulsa, OK
50. Oklahoma City, OK

Via Treehugger.
Photo via flickr by skew-t.

Comments (4)

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Adam Pieniazek said:

Did they factor in the size of the city into their equation and if not, why not? Boston is known as the walking city and deservedly so as it's relatively easy to walk across the city. I pretty much bike or walk to everywhere I need to get to in this city and have pretty much no need for a car or public transportation...though the winters are tough...

July 04, 2008 | url

Shek said:

Bulls eye on Jacksonville FL. It is such a pain to get around here. The bicycling infrastructure is almost non-existent. Lack of funds should not be a shock as there is barely enough for education and police. The newer roads are getting bike lanes but the vastness of Jacksonville and the abundance of strip malls demand bicycling highways. The best main roads to go around town (Southside Blvd, JT Butler and Atlantic) are the most bicycle unfriendly. The topography is so flat here that it should be the perfect city of bicycling. Winters are not that cruel either. I so want to be able to live car-free but a car is such a necessity here. Working on it though!!

July 04, 2008 | url

Galls said:

San Fran over NY, what the hell? I guess touristy trolleys and huge hills beat a 24 hour subway system that is unmatched in the country.

July 05, 2008

Shek said:

Here is an article about the state of Jacksonville's bicycling infrastructure http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/062808/met_296826813.shtml

July 06, 2008 | url

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