Planning Innovation or City Branding? Exploring How Cities Operationalise the 20-Minute Neighbourhood Concept

Abstract

Cities worldwide are increasingly adopting the 20-minute neighbourhood concept within broader sustainable urban development strategies. However, there is limited understanding of how the concept has been operationalised in cities that have adopted the concept nor of the outcomes to offer guidance to new locations considering uptake. This paper reports on a content evaluation of how the 20-minute neighbourhood concept has been operationalised in planning documents of the 33 cities worldwide that have adopted or are considering the concept. A general lack of implementation with measurability nor statutory policy weight to support planners to enact the concept in practice was found.