The 15-minute cities concept conceives that by actively designing an urban area, the daily needs of work, education, healthcare and leisure can be reached by a 15-minute walk or bike ride from where you live. The aim is to reduce car dependency, improve air quality, reduce the need to travel, promote healthy and sustainable living, and improve the quality of life for residents.
Professor Carlos Moreno is credited with conceiving the term of ’15-minute cities’, but the concept emerged in the 1950’s with The Death and Life of Great American Cities. For decades, urban designers and town planners have wrestled with the tension of allowing market forces to dictate where services and facilities should be located and the blinding obvious benefits of people being able to walk or cycle to all that they need for day to day living.
The climate crisis has added further justification for limiting the use of the car in urban areas, and prioritising urban space for green space, biodiversity, sustainable drainage, active travel, and spaces which benefit mental and physical health.
Very recently the concept has been hijacked by libertarians and conspiracy theorists and they’ve sought to influence the debate around LTN’s (Low Traffic Neighbourhoods). The COVID-19 pandemic boosted the popularity of the concept as they psychological and emotional value of green spaces within walking distance became apparent to those locked-down. Excess deaths from poor air quality and the failure of many of our urban areas to meet clean air targets has forced many local authorities to close off ‘rat runs’ as they limit through-traffic in residential areas. Progress in improving facilities for active travel require greater investment, and with government restricting local authority investment are only slowly being undertaken. Seen by libertarians as limiting freedom and access to the highway network, the value of LTN’s and 15-minute neighbourhoods is being shouted down. As planners, we have a role in encouraging free and open debate. Here in Newcastle, consultation is taking place on its fourth LTN.
Unfortunately, the success of these conspiracy theories in making headlines in recent weeks has worrying long term implications for both climate and social action. Governments, both local and national, may find it very hard to implement or even communicate policies concerning the climate crisis without an increased backlash response. This is why it is so important that we can communicate the purpose of urban design and town planning and aid in the dispelling of myths related to planning concepts.
It is also important to highlight that whilst there are many potential benefits to the 15-minute cities concept such as reducing car dependence and promoting walkability in urban areas, there are still some limitations. One difficulty, or impracticality, is implementing the 15-minute city concept in established urban areas, where land use and infrastructure are already in place. Also, the concept may not be feasible in areas with low population density or in low-income communities where transportation options are limited, without major additional work on a socio-economic level. For example, Pozoukidou and Chatziyiannaki write in the journal Sustainability that the creation of dense, walkable urban cores often leads to gentrification or displacement of lower-income residents to outlying neighbourhoods due to rising property values.
There is also the need of innovation. Innovation in terms of how we retrofit mixed uses to our already-established, single-use neighbourhoods, and also to consider new ways of working, not least from the housebuilders that tend to deliver them. Without these additional considerations, there is a risk that the 15-minute cities will remain the reserve of the metropolitan elite. This is why a multi-disciplinary approach is vital with planning and urban design to ensure that all stakeholders and communities are best represented.
At ethical partnership our work is guided by our values, where we place a strong emphasis on the needs of the local community. We are happy to talk and work with local authorities, developers and private clients to ensure that the planning process works with all stakeholders provides the best possible outcome for the local community.
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