The concept of hyper proximity in cities is by no means new; however, the idea has recently come to the forefront of urban planning through the notion of a 15-minute city.
The idea has been re-popularised in Europe thanks to the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, who ran her re-election campaign on the promise of transforming Paris into the “ville du quart d’heure”.
The 15-minute city requires each of Paris’s districts to provide everything residents need to live and work within 15 minutes of their home via foot or bike. The sustainability-focused strategy presumes that cars will become redundant, our pace of life will slow, and we will once again enjoy a neighbourhood-centric utopia.
Fundamentally, everyone living in a city should enjoy ready access to essential urban services – to opportunities, amenities, variety, and other people. This is why people choose to live in cities. Indeed, the easiest way to travel within any urban neighbourhood is to walk or cycle, with no parking issues, waiting for an Uber, bus, or train. Given this, it seems obvious that we should all be able to access most of the places we need to go within a 15-minute walk or cycle.
Whilst proponents of the idea did not foresee a global pandemic, the concept clearly resonates with the world in which we now live.
The 15-minute city emerged with Carlos Moreno, a University Professor, who has since been appointed Special Envoy of Smart Cities in Paris. According to Moreno:
“The 15-minute city represents the possibility of a decentralized city. At its heart is the concept of mixing urban social functions to create a vibrant vicinity—replicated, like fractals, across an entire urban expanse.
“We know it is better for people to work near to where they live, and if they can go shopping nearby and have the leisure and services they need around them too, it allows them to have a more tranquil existence.”
With Parisians adapting to the 15-minute city, could the UK be next?
Globalisation, climate concerns and Covid-19 have no-doubt ignited a re-evaluation of our way of life in the UK. In response to this, many urban planners are now turning to models which prioritise cities as a place to live, not just places to commute into.
The 15-minute city builds on emerging trends in city planning. The UK has already made very conscious efforts to reduce carbon emissions inside urban hubs. The London congestion charge introduced in 2003 will be followed by a Birmingham ‘Clean Air’ levy which will come into effect in 2021. As we rely on cars less, the demand for local amenities has increased and pedestrian and cycle-only routes are being re-prioritised.
In 2020, Andy Street unveiled the reimagined 500-mile Starley Network, that will connect existing pedestrian and cycle routes across the West Midlands. The vehicle-free routes will be separated from traffic, as the West Midlands moves to a more environmentally friendly style of connectivity.
City leaders, including Andy Street, have also prioritised town centre development and the re-purposing of brownfield land as a core plank of their political agenda. This easily feeds into central ideas of the 15-minute city.
Critics of the 15-minute city argue that it will further marginalise less affluent neighbourhoods, cutting them off from opportunities and reducing social mobility. Furthermore, huge transport projects such as HS2 would undermine the 15-minute city in the UK.
It remains to be seen whether this utopian vision is deliverable, either in Paris or in UK cities. Perhaps if Paris is successful other European countries will follow suit. With the Covid-19 pandemic fundamentally shifting our attitudes to the places in which we live and work, adopting new models of urban planning seems likely.
However, effective implementation — the difficult but gratifying work of transforming our cities and neighbourhoods — is what really matters. For urban areas to reach their full potential, 15-minute city efforts must be widespread, ambitious, and effective, supported by policy makers.
Even without the adoption of the 15-minute city model, work towards improving cycle networks, safe pedestrianised urban areas and green spaces looks set to be turbo-charged as we emerge from the pandemic. In part driven by changing behaviour patterns, as well as the need to reduce CO2 emissions, change is coming to our cities. Maybe Paris has the answer, but even if it doesn’t, we need to be ready to respond.
