15 Minute (Bike Ride) Cities
The “15-minute cities” idea has only recently come to my attention and, from what I have gleaned about it so far, it seems to me like a lot of wishful thinking…
The 15-minute city or 15mC[3]) is an urban planning concept in which most daily necessities and services, such as work, shopping, education, healthcare, and leisure can be easily reached by a 15-minute walk, bike ride, or public transit ride from any point in the city.[4] This approach aims to reduce car dependency, promote healthy and sustainable living, and improve wellbeing and quality of life for city dwellers.[5]
Implementing the 15-minute city concept requires a multi-disciplinary approach, involving transportation planning, urban design, and policymaking, to create well-designed public spaces, pedestrian-friendly streets, and mixed-use development. This change in lifestyle may include remote working which reduces daily commuting and is supported by the recent widespread availability of information and communications technology. The concept has been described as a “return to a local way of life”. (WIKI)
The following summary of the idea is a typical piece of leftist-inspired pseudo-babble –
note the use of woke-ish words like diversity, inclusivity, vibrancy, and granular..!
The 15-minute neighbourhood serves as an organising principle for urban development and urban life that makes life more liveable for residents, by improving air quality and making neighbourhoods safer, quieter, more diverse, inclusive and economically vibrant. It requires a move towards a more decentralised and devolved planning framework that understands in granular detail the unique characteristics of each neighbourhood and encourages development that will demonstrably improve the quality of life of the residents in those neighbourhoods.
The idea of creating 15-minute cities WITHIN existing cities (other than new purpose-built cities) is preposterous if, as the name would seem to imply, ALL WORKPLACES and PUBLIC FACILITIES should be within a 15-minute walk of home. However, on reading further, it becomes apparent that 15mC advocates do not mean a 15-minute WALK, but a 15-minute BIKE RIDE – or even PUBLIC TRANSPORT RIDE – obviously something completely DIFFERENT..!
The bike ride presumption is a big fudge since a 15-minute bike ride is equivalent to a 45-minute or even a one-hour walk, and that is certainly NOT a convenient distance at all..!
continued on page 94 (old Private Eye joke)
Recent Comments