The traffic jam is getting longer, the weather is getting denser. So expanding public transport will only make things worse. The better recipe is: condense, degrease, navigate.
Municipality, schools, Migros, baker, family doctor, cafeteria, hairdresser, plumber, nursing home etc. The vast majority of jobs serve local or regional needs. So why are the commutes to and from work getting longer and longer? Why does the average Swiss drive approximately 15,000 kilometers per year by car and public transport? Why are we stuck in traffic twice as much today as we did in 2010? Why do we underestimate that traffic will continue to increase?
10 Minute Neighborhood
Sibylle Wälty (45), spatial development researcher at ETH, knows: because we are constantly investing in mobility. And because it is more financially and financially attractive for cities to attract business and leave the construction of housing, schools and kindergartens to suburban communities.
It is not surprising that the distances for work, consumption and entertainment are getting longer and longer. Public transport is being expanded and gasoline engines are being developed so that traffic jams do not waste more of our time and the car does not occupy more traffic area, and at least to eliminate ecological problems. must be replaced by electric drives.
But instead, why don’t we bring work, life and shopping closer together? Sibylle Wälty has developed a formula for this – the 10-minute neighborhood. At least 10,000 people and 5,000 businesses within a 500-metre radius with good public transport links. It’s not just a theory, it’s based on experience.
If people can walk to everything they need in 10 minutes, then they will walk. And then it is worth opening a pharmacy, a bar, a hairdresser, even a bookstore there. And then it comes in handy to have a wide variety of public facilities like schools, libraries or parks.
Up to 50 percent less traffic
Surveys show that residents of such 10-minute neighborhoods use only 15 percent of their journey, compared to around 50 percent in cottage-like suburban communities and rural areas. This also applies to commuting, because the more intense the development, the greater the opportunity and incentive to find a job within walking or cycling distance.
According to one happiness study, every minute of less trips to work each day results in almost a one percent greater wage increase in happiness. You can also save a lot on shipping costs.
According to Wälty’s projections, by 2050 a third of the Swiss population will live in a 10-minute neighborhood, provided spatial planning is constantly focused on the intensification of centers from 2023. This could halve the volume of traffic caused by cars. This also means: less traffic noise, more playgrounds for children, more encounters, more neighbourhood, better quality of life.
distribute benefits fairly
Good prospects, but they will only come true if the baker, bookstore and all other service providers can also buy an apartment in their neighborhood. In other words: the added value created by the people through investments made in the neighborhood (public transport, schools, police, playgrounds, higher utilization rate) should be distributed fairly.
For this, the state can either strip the increased market value from the landlords or force the landlords to adjust their rents according to the purchasing power of the residents: “You are part of a neighborhood, so act like a neighbor. ”