With this model, there would no longer be a single urban centre, giving way to small nuclei where each neighbourhood has the services that its inhabitants need on a daily basis . It is about conceiving a new urban life where time is not an enemy nor is haste a travelling companion. A polycentric city where people move around with all possible ease and can choose between making the journey on foot, by bicycle or by public transport.
Who invented the 15-minute city?
We first heard this expression from Anna Hidalgo, the business & consumer mobile numbers database mayor of Paris, when she made public her plan to turn the French city into “La Ville Du Quart d'Heure” (which translated means the city of 15 minutes).
Improve the habitability of neighborhoods so that they have more green areas and less traffic.
Promote community and outdoor activities, taking advantage of the fact that spaces become more friendly.
According to the Transport for London study, chrono-urbanism boosts the local economy and favours small businesses: the fact that people walk more or travel by bicycle increases the chances of shopping in local shops by up to 40% compared to when they travel by car.
It is positive for citizens' health because, by walking more, they reduce sedentary lifestyle and increase daily physical activity.
It is a fact that the world is becoming increasingly urbanised: half of humanity, 3.5 billion people, live in cities and by 2030 this figure is expected to rise to 5 billion.
By then, we should be able to explain how we have transformed metropolitan areas into pollution-free spaces, where growth is controlled and adequate infrastructure and services are ensured for all. If we succeed, we will have achieved goal number 11 included in the UN Agenda 2030.
Why does the 15-minute city resemble that of our grandparents?
Curiously, the origin of chronourbanism was inspired by an idea that emerged much earlier, in 1920, by Clarence Perry . What the American urban planner proposed was to create small neighborhood units or communities delimited by roads that were intended for vehicle traffic.
