Single correct option
Urban planners have increasingly turned to the concept of the '15-minute city' — a model in which most daily necessities such as work, shopping, healthcare and education lie within a 15-minute walk or bicycle ride of home. Proponents argue the model reduces car dependency, lowers emissions and strengthens local economies by keeping spending within neighbourhoods. Critics counter that the concept, if pursued rigidly, could entrench spatial segregation by income, since only affluent neighbourhoods can attract the full range of amenities required, and note that retrofitting car-centric cities built over decades around dispersed zoning is a far costlier undertaking than the slogan suggests.
Which of the following best summarises the paragraph?
Which of the following best summarises the paragraph?
- A. The 15-minute city is an urban planning fad that ignores the practical costs of implementation.
- B. The 15-minute city model promises environmental and economic benefits by localising daily amenities, but critics warn it risks worsening income-based segregation and underestimates retrofitting costs.
- C. Car dependency is the single greatest obstacle to sustainable urban planning today.
- D. Affluent neighbourhoods are best suited to adopt car-free lifestyles because they already have local amenities.
Show answer and solution
Answer: (B) The 15-minute city model promises environmental and economic benefits by localising daily amenities, but critics warn it risks worsening income-based segregation and underestimates retrofitting costs.
The paragraph presents both the proponents' case (reduced car dependency, emissions, local economic benefit) and the critics' case (income segregation risk, high retrofitting cost). Option B is the only one that captures both sides in balance; the others focus on only a fragment or misstate the paragraph's claims.
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