CSSSA - August Webinar

The 15-minute city quantified using human mobility data

Amid rising congestion and transport emissions, policymakers are embracing the ‘15-minute city’ model, which envisions neighborhoods where basic needs can be met within a short walk from home. Prior research has primarily examined amenity access without exploring its relationship to behavior. We introduce a measure of local trip behavior using GPS data from 40 million US mobile devices, defining ‘15-minute usage’ as the proportion of consumption-related trips made within a 15-minute walk from home. Our findings show that the median resident makes only 14% of daily consumption trips locally. Differences in access to local amenities can explain 84% and 74% of the variation in 15-minute usage across and within urban areas, respectively. Historical data from New York zoning policies suggest a causal relationship between local access and 15-minute usage. However, we find a trade-off: increased local usage correlates with higher experienced segregation for low-income residents, signaling potential socio-economic challenges in achieving local living.

Bio:

Arianna Salazar-Miranda is an Assistant Professor at Yale’s School of the Environment. Her research examines the interplay between the built environment, human behavior, and sustainability using computational methods and new data sources. She is also interested in developing digital tools in collaboration with cities and communities to foster more sustainable urban environments.