Introduction

The 15-minute city is a planning model aimed at creating sustainable and liveable cities. The concept was coined by Carlos Moreno in 2016 and proposes that citizens should have access to all their basic essentials, including living, working, healthcare, education, commerce, and entertainment, within a 15-minute walk or bike ride from their homes. The four major planning principles to achieve this model include proximity (destinations should be close to one’s home), diversity (in land use, people and cultural), density (local businesses and services depend on a certain number of customers or visitors in a compact city model), and ubiquity (available and affordable for all citizens) (Allam et al., 2022). Walking and cycling facilities and creating cities and neighbourhoods with identity are also essential components of each 15-minute city. The involvement of local stakeholders and citizens is critical in these transformations, and digitalization is another cornerstone to take advantage of (Moreno et al., 2021).

Combine both urban design strategies and applied technology solutions for achieving the desired outcomes of sustainability are at the core of the emerging models for urban development, namely: the “15-Minute City’, the ‘data-driven smart compact city’, the ‘smart eco-city’, the ‘data‐driven smart eco‐city’, the ‘integrated sustainable district’, the ‘data‐driven city’ or the data‐driven smart city (Allam et al., 2022). Different concepts to achieve similar goals.

Implementation

The 15-Minute City concept has been adopted by numerous cities globally, including Paris, Portland, Singapore, Melbourne, Dublin, and Rome. This planning concept incorporates Moreno's six social functions essential for urban life: living, working, healthcare/caring, education, commerce, and entertainment; and eight planning principles which are proximity to services, proximity to public transport, density, mixed land use, walkable and cyclable streets, public space and placemaking, and inclusiveness. However, these functions and principles are flexible, and each city must decide what to do, essential functions and their importance might be different for different users and contexts.

Finally, at least four typical spatial implementation strategies arise: Transit-Oriented-Development, (Re-)Development of and around high streets/main streets, Development around vertical centres/hubs and reuse existing (public) spaces.

Transit-Oriented Development focuses on high-density, mixed-use developments in proximity to public transport stations. The goal is to have a walkable environment around the station while also being able to quickly travel to destinations in other parts of the city and regions with public transport.

High streets (or main streets) that serve as centres for shops and services are find in existing structures in smaller towns or former villages.

Hubs or “vertical centres”, like shopping malls, different services (i.e., doctors, childcare, libraries, etc.) are housed within a larger building. Such structures are typical for cities with only limited available space.

Reuse existing (public) spaces, for instance, green open spaces are increased by making better use of open spaces of schools, offices, residential complexes, and universities, during weekends (EIT, 2022).

Benefits

The implementation of the 15-minute cities approach presents a wide range of benefits, including social, health, economic, and environmental benefits. Social benefits include increased social cohesion, a sense of place, and reduced crime (Allam et al., 2022), while health benefits come from promoting physical activity, improving road safety, and reducing air and noise pollution (WHO, 2015). Sustainability and environmental impacts result from reduced greenhouse gas emissions, lower private car use, and improved air quality (Skirienė & Stasiškienė, 2021). There are also benefits for households and local businesses, lower road maintenance costs, and public health costs (Litman, 2022). Furthermore, the promotion of tourism through walkable and cyclable streets can lead to economic growth.

Suburban Context

In suburban contexts, achieving the ideals of a 15-Minute City requires a change in the narrative that has been guiding modern city planning, which has been focused on separating residential from retail, entertainment, and workspaces. Suburban areas often have strict zoning limitations around residential uses only, making it difficult to achieve the ideals of the 15-Minute City (Vitale Brovarone, 2022). Additionally, reducing car dependency, which has been the norm in suburban communities for many decades, is essential for achieving the ideals of a 15-Minute City in suburban areas. However, smaller and poorer communities may have limited funding for modifications in their neighbourhoods, which presents a challenge that needs to be addressed by policymakers when it comes to municipal and regional funding allocations (EIT, 2022).

Territorial jurisdiction implications also need to be considered, as different needs, interests, and objectives in specific territories form the aims of local administrations. One key challenge could be extending the model beyond the municipal boundaries and aligning interests and objectives among different territorial units (Halaskova & Halaskova, 2009).

Finally, suburban centres impose a morphological challenge due to their non-urban character, for instance residents are spread out on a larger surface, therefore it is found a poor density.  This raises questions about how adaptable suburban towns are to implementing the 15-Minute City model (Zakariasson, 2022).

Urban context

One of the main issues in Urban context is gentrification, which could occur if the model is not designed to benefit all neighbourhoods equally. This is because strict land-use planning codes have favoured the separation and segregation of functions in our cities, leading to extreme inequalities in terms of resource distribution and access to high-quality amenities and services (Pozoukidou & Angelidou, 2022). Therefore, new urban planning interventions, such as the 15-Minute City model, must be understood and implemented alongside socially inclusive development processes (TUMI, 2021).

Another challenge is high vacancies of retail stores in historic town centres, particularly in the European context. Many small to mid-sized cities with historic town centres offer conditions that are favourable for the implementation of the 15-Minute City model. However, they have been neglected due to the development of larger greenfield commercial areas, leading to through-traffic and the slow but steady decline of businesses (Bibri et al., 2020). Nevertheless, cities should draw up concepts that strengthen local supply in their historic centres and regulate growth on their edges.

Social Justice

The goal of the 15-Minute City is to ensure that essential services are accessible to all members of society, regardless of their abilities and socio-economic or cultural factors. This involves not only proximity to services, but also inclusiveness and design for all. The distribution of essential services has always been a planning problem regarding social justice, affecting people's well-being.

One example is that regarding time and distance, there is no consensus on which travel time or travel distance would capture most pedestrian and cycling trips, since the distance covered by different age and abilities groups may vary (Milias & Psyllidis, 2022).

A needs-based approach

A needs-based approach should be taken when redesigning the 15-Minute City to ensure accessibility for all. This approach should consider the different essential services that are required by different age groups and people with disabilities or chronic illnesses. Citizen participation should be encouraged to identify these services. For instance, Weng et al. (2019) assessed the importance of different amenities to different age groups in Shanghai through a survey questionnaire considering 6 main categories: education, medical care, municipal administration, finance and telecommunication, commercial services, and elderly care. People were asked about the number of times per week (or month) in specific activities and the amenities that they would like to reach within 5, 10 and 15-minute walking distance. Results showed that the most weighted activity for older people was “fresh food market” while for children it was “schools”.

Public transport connections should also be considered in the policies of the 15-Minute City to ensure that people have access to specialized health and social services that may not be available in every neighbourhood.

Universal accessibility should be a key consideration in the policies of the 15-Minute City. This includes not only physical barriers but also cognitive, visual, and auditive barriers. The percentage of the global population experiencing permanent disability is increasing, and it is important to consider the interaction between individuals with health conditions, infrastructure, and environmental factors to enhance their quality of life (World Health Organization, 2021).

Environmental quality or exposure could reinforce the walkability or cyclability of a city and encourage people to choose these transport modes. Including variables like comfort (e.g., thermal, visual, acoustic, etc.), security (e.g., cleanliness, lighting, visibility, social control, crime, etc), directness and simplicity (e.g., legibility, wayfinding, signals, information, free of barriers), and traffic safety (e.g., spatial separation between footpaths, cycleways, and traffic roads, safe crossings, timing in traffic lights, etc.) (Jehle et al., 2022).

Higher quality and accessible, universal design walking and cycling networks in most underserved and low-income neighbourhoods that ensure connection to all areas of the city, combined with frequent and affordable public transport are some concrete ways to ensure accessibility to all users in a ±15-minute development model (Bruntlett, 2022).

In general, it is important that pedestrian, cycling, and traffic ways have a separated infrastructure to ensure safety for all users (Handler, 2014).

Roadmap

The roadmap involves five steps towards achieving a "15-Minute City for ALL". The first step is for a city to develop its own vision of what a 15-Minute City means, as this can vary depending on the context. The second step involves proposing measures to assess the current status and progress of implementing the strategy, which can help identify areas of need for intervention and adjust strategies if necessary. Based on the results of these steps, along with input from citizens and local decision-makers and planners, a tailor-made Action Plan can be designed, including a budget, timeline, and assessment of areas of need. The Action Plan should then be implemented in phases, allowing for experimentation with low-cost interventions, room for failure, and evaluation. The involvement of the local community throughout the entire process is critical to collecting human-centred insights and creating places and public spaces that people will use (EIT, 2022).

Summary

The 15-Minute City concept aims to provide people with all necessary destinations within a 15-minute walk or bike ride from their homes, promoting social cohesion, mental and physical health, and environmental sustainability. However, challenges exist, including potential gentrification and coordination issues between administrative units. Key elements for implementation include proximity to essential services, public transport, mixed land use, walkable and cyclable streets, placemaking, inclusiveness, and ubiquity. Overall, the goal is to provide access for all residents, regardless of socio-economic and demographic status. Finally, a roadmap approach is defined as a framework for each city that can adopt the concept.

References

Bibri, S. E., Krogstie, J., & Kärrholm, M. (2020). Compact city planning and development: Emerging practices and strategies for achieving the goals of sustainability. Developments in the built environment, 4, 100021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dibe.2020.100021

Bruntlett, M. (2022). The 15-Minute City: A Feminist Utopia. Published by Transformative Urban Mobility Initiative (TUMI) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH Sector Project Sustainable Mobility Bonn and Eschborn.

https://womenmobilize.org/wpcontent/uploads/2022/05/TUMI_WMW_Feminism_and_the15min_City.pdf

EIT Urban Mobility. 2022. ±15-Minute City: Human-centred planning in action. Mobility for more liveable urban spaces.

Handler, S. (2014). An alternative age-friendly handbook for the socially engaged practitioner. University of Manchester Library, Manchester, UK. http://www.micra.Manchester.ac.uk/medialibrary/Age-friendlyHandbook_LARGE%20PRINT%20VERSION.pdf

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Litman, T. A. (2022). Economic Value of Walkability. Transportation Research Record, 10(1828), 3–11. https://doi.org/10.3141/1828-01

Milias, V., & Psyllidis, A. (2022). Measuring spatial age segregation through the lens of co-accessibility to urban activities. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 95(April), 101829. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compenvurbsys.2022.101829

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Pozoukidou, G., & Angelidou, M. (2022). Urban Planning in the 15-Minute City: Revisited under Sustainable and Smart City Developments until 2030. Smart Cities, 5(4), 1356-1375. https://doi.org/10.3390/smartcities5040069

Skirienė, A. F., & Stasiškienė, Ž. (2021). COVID-19 and air pollution: Measuring pandemic impact to air quality in five European countries. Atmosphere, 12(3). https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12030290

Vitale Brovarone, E. (2022). Accessibility and mobility in peripheral areas: a national place-based policy. European Planning Studies, 30(8), 1444-1463. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2021.1894098

Weng, M., Ding, N., Li, J., Jin, X., Xiao, H., He, Z., & Su, S. (2019). The 15-minute walkable neighbourhoods: Measurement, social inequalities and implications for building healthy communities in urban China. Journal of Transport and Health, 13(129), 259–273. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jth.2019.05.005

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Zakariasson, A. (2022). A study of the 15-Minute City concept. Identifying strength, risks, and challenges through imagining the implementation of the 15-minute city concept in Munich, Germany. Master thesis. KTH, School of Architecture and the Built Environment (ABE), Urban Planning and Environment, Urban and Regional Studies. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1683687&dswid=-7560