NRW Leads Germany in Local Public Services, New Nationwide Study Shows

Regional Disparities and Top Performers

In contrast, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania ranked last, with more than half of its municipalities classified as 'very poorly' supplied. The study highlights a persistent east-west divide, though eastern German cities performed better than expected: 30 percent were rated 'very good,' compared to just under 20 percent of western German cities.

Nationwide, the Bavarian municipality of Haar near Munich claimed the top spot. Hessian cities also performed strongly, with Offenbach, Frankfurt, and Eschborn (Main-Taunus) taking second, third, and fourth places respectively.

Other highly ranked Hessian municipalities include Mühlheim am Main, Bischofsheim (Groß-Gerau), Schwalbach am Taunus, Rüsselsheim am Main, Kriftel, and Neu-Isenburg. Many of these are located in the Rhine-Main region and benefit from the area's dense infrastructure.

About two-thirds of the more than 400 Hessian municipalities in the IW dataset are classified as 'very good' or 'good.' However, nearly 70 Hessian municipalities were categorized as 'poor' or 'very poor,' including Heidenrod (Rheingau-Taunus), Waldkappel (Werra-Meißner), Oberzent (Odenwald), and Flörsbachtal (Main-Kinzig).

Thuringian Results and Public Perception

Flörsbachtal and Mossautal (Odenwald) were among the nationwide laggards in fast internet access, while Oberzent achieved only a low ranking in the mobility category.

In Thuringia, the town of Friedrichroda secured a top-ten national ranking, placing tenth. Other well-rated Thuringian municipalities included Bad Tabarz (71st), Gotha (125th), Eisenach (138th), and the state capital Erfurt (146th). The lowest-ranked Thuringian municipality was Gerstengrund in the Wartburg district, which placed 10,810th out of 10,817.

The IW also surveyed more than 5,000 people about their perception of local services. Fifty-three percent rated local provision positively, while one in four expressed dissatisfaction.

Political Reactions and Investment Plans

Study author Matthias Diermeier noted that perception of public services also influences trust in democracy and the state. He observed that among supporters of the SPD, CDU/CSU, and Greens, roughly every second person considers local provision reliable, whereas 'AfD supporters perceive even the immediate provision in their municipality through a pessimism filter.'

Hesse's Minister-President Boris Rhein (CDU) called the study results 'a strong signal for Hesse' on Monday. He stated that the state government is investing ten billion euros in modern infrastructure, strong municipalities, and good public services in the coming years through the Hessenplan, covering areas from mobility and digitalization to education and health.

The study was commissioned by the tobacco company Philip Morris and first reported by the news magazine 'Spiegel.'