15-minute cities will free us to improve our mental health and wellbeing

https://theconversation.com/forget-the-conspiracies-15-minute-cities-will-free-us-to-improve-our-mental-health-and-wellbeing-200823

by doener • 3 years ago

15 11 3 years ago

theconversation.com

codeddesign2• 3 years ago

I’m not sure what the promotion is here? Most of EU and Eastern Europe is already like this. Essentially, everyone would have to live in an apartment and be walking distance to everything. Who funds the development? Who ensures job access? What about upward mobility if the encouragement is to stay within 15 mins?

Considering the US had one of the largest economic booms in history once their was easy access to travel (cars, commercial aircraft), I can’t help but to put on my tinfoil hat and ask “why”? Would this not place huge limitation on access??

On a side note: apartments and close quarters were the worse thing during COVID. Now immediately following that they are promoting it?

dradtke• 3 years ago

I think the idea is to improve the sustainability of a city by reducing people's need to travel by car, which uses energy, and to improve its livability by ensuring easy access to most (or all) of life's amenities.

That doesn't mean it should be impossible to travel beyond the 15-minute limit. Other forms of long-form transit, like trains and cars, will always have a place, but not everyone thinks that they should be required to simply live.

mailund2• 3 years ago

I think maybe there's a misunderstanding here. The 15 minute concept is that you should be able to access most things you need for day to day needs within a short walk, not that you should never travel further than 15 minutes from your home. It's that you shouldn't be required to have a car or someone who can drive you in order to access your basic needs.

codeddesign2• 3 years ago

It goes back to the same questions: - Who funds this? - Who ensures employment security? - Would this not prevent diversity? - How would this encourage upward mobility?

This seems like planned financial segregation. Factories began doing this in the 50’s and it turned into Gerri’s while wealthier moved away from the cities.

jschveibinz• 3 years ago

Neighborhoods are good - Jane Jacobs

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Jacobs

gladiatr72• 3 years ago

Most US cities tore down their housing projects years ago. How does this differ? It takes one bad stretch for businesses to bail on an area.

ReflectedImage• 3 years ago

Well I already live in one. Everything I need is within a 15 minute walk.

Supermarket, Swimming Pool, 350 shops, 20 restaurants, train station, bowling, cinema, indoor golf, escape rooms, etc...

All in all, I kinda like it!

mateo1• 3 years ago

Tried in oxford. Essentially it's a scheme to privatize public roads creating gated communities and ghettos. Can't be scrapped fast enough.

If you want to turn streets into pedestrian only zones do so, but making them accessible to some but not all is unacceptable to me and to most people.

https://www.itv.com/news/meridian/2023-02-19/five-arrests-as...

15-minute cities will free us to improve our mental health and wellbeing

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