Dog mess, litter, chewing gum, and cigarette butts on the floor, graffiti on the walls, all come together to highlight how dirty a city is, and in Spain, the worst cities appear to be those in tourist hotspots, especially in the large Mediterranean and southern capitals, according to an ongoing survey by the OCU consumer group.
The consumer organisation has carried out a satisfaction survey with street cleaning in 69 cities and one of its conclusions is that there has been “little progress” in the last four years. “In two out of three cities the results are mediocre and one in three fails, in the opinion of its inhabitants.”
According to the OCU, “the general citizen assessment has been stagnant since our previous study in 2019”. “Bad news, because then a record low was recorded and now the average grade is one point lower: 52 average grade compared to 53 in 2019,” they highlight. Likewise, the rating given in general satisfaction “does not reach 50 out of 100 in one of every three cities”, which means a fail, and in another third of them it remains a scratched pass.
In general, the organisation affirms, the large Mediterranean and southern capitals with a large influx of tourists concentrate the lowest ratings, “but not always”. Palma, Alicante and Seville stand out among the worst, followed by San Sebastián de los Reyes, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Barcelona and Madrid.
In addition, three cities “break in with force” in this negative ranking: Barcelona, which has fallen 11 points out of 100 since 2019; Seville, which drops 10 points; and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, which lost 7 points.
Among the populations with the best ratings from their neighbours, Oviedo, Bilbao and Vigo stand out as the cleanest cities in Spain.
Among the dozen aspects related to urban cleanliness that the respondents have evaluated, the worst ratings focus, once again, on the excessive presence of dog mess on the pavements, on the rubbish around the waste bins, on the existence of graffiti and in the lack of general cleanliness in the suburban areas.
There are also very notable improvements compared to previous studies. Among the cities that have improved the most, Guadalajara stands out, which progresses up to 25 points, or Jaén and Lugo, which rise 18 points.
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