The idea behind a 15 minute city, or 15 minute neighbourhood, is relatively simple – it’s all about ‘living locally’. It’s a concept where all the amenities needed by a typical household are within a 15 minute walk or bike ride, creating a low traffic neighbourhood. 

For many, rush hour commutes, packed trains and congested roads are just part and parcel of living in a big city. A ‘15 minute city’ could change all that. 

The end goal is to increase accessibility for residents, improve people’s health and wellbeing, grow the local economy, reduce congestion, and cut unnecessary car usage; ultimately creating a cleaner and more sustainable environment, all whilst helping to tackle the climate crisis. 

It’s already happening in dozens of cities across the world, and with discussions to trial the concept in various locations around the UK, the idea behind a 15 minute city might just be one step towards a more sustainable future.

So, how else can 15 minute cities help us take  climate action?

Alongside the obvious benefits of reducing car use, such as fuel savings, reduced car maintenance, and a lower traffic accident risk, swapping out the car to walk or cycle within a 15 minute city concept has huge environmental benefits

Transport accounts for 24% of the UK’s total greenhouse gas emissions¹. By ditching the car for those shorter journeys we’re not only becoming more active and travelling in a safer environment, we’re also significantly helping reduce emissions.

In the long term, that means not just less traffic on the roads, it might also mean reduced car ownership for households. Larger families in urban areas might switch from two cars to one shared vehicle, or even decide that a car is no longer needed for them, creating more free green space on areas once used as street-parking and car parks. 

Although the concept behind a 15 minute city advocates a no-car policy, there may be times when getting out and about by car is the only practical option. In these cases, driving a fully electric (EV) or hybrid car is a great alternative. By increasing the use of EVs and smart EV charging within these areas, we’re able to cut emissions, improve air quality and reduce noise pollution, causing far less environmental damage than your standard petrol or diesel vehicle.

With no carbon dioxide exhaust emissions, driving an electric vehicle means no air pollutants which contribute to smog and health problems and no greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide and methane.

And if you’re charging your car at home, with a 100% renewables-backed electricity supply or using your own solar panels, you’re truly minimising the environmental impact of having your car on the road. By significantly reducing car use and relying on EV and hybrid vehicles when necessary, we can cut emissions and create cleaner air.  

How cities look and feel could be transformed within a 15 minute city, leaving behind the ‘concrete jungle’ and creating entirely new green spaces.

Areas previously used as car parks could be repurposed as green spaces for residents to exercise, socialise and bring the local community together in a natural and healthier environment.

With more trees, plants and fewer cars on the road, rewilding city spaces also improves biodiversity and invites new wildlife into urban areas, creating a desirable habitat for birds, insects, and other animals.

By the end of this year, it’s predicted we’ll have 43 megacities (cities with more than 10 million people) and 68% of the world’s population living in cities by 2050⁵.

Now is the time to start adapting cities to not only keep up with the challenges of rapid urbanisation, but to also reduce our energy and carbon emissions. 

A 15 minute city could help develop communities in a sustainable way; transforming the way people work, travel, socialise, exercise, and carry out their daily activities while creating a cleaner, greener, and healthier environment to live in.   

Solar energy could also lay a huge part in the future of 15 minute cities.

With so many environmental – and financial - benefits to using solar power, its expansion into inner cities is a no-brainer. Whether homeowners choose to install solar panels on their rooftops, or commercial spaces decide to integrate solar energy into facades and windows into their buildings, it’s a major player in helping cut costs and drive us towards a renewable future. 

Feeling inspired to live more sustainably? Read one of our other blogs below:

^{1.  Department for Transport: Transport and environmental official statistics 2022}

^{2. Office for Health Improvement & Disparities: Air Pollution, Applying All Our Health}

^{3. Royal Meterological Society: Urban Heat Islands}

^{4. The Guardian: 'Planting more trees could cut deaths from summer heat'}

^{5. World Economic Forum: These will be the world's megacities in 2023}