Dynamics Between Population Distribution and Location of Services: The Case Study of Desio Town, Italy

As global concerns about public health and environmental sustainability increase, urban planners and decision-makers are developing new policies to encourage both active and public transportation habits. Alternatives to private car transport provide important benefits, such as reducing carbon emissions and traffic congestion and enhancing physical fitness and mental well-being. Under this premise, during the last few years, the ‘15-Minute City’ concept has evolved around the urban configuration that distributes functions to optimise people’s time travel related to basic activities. Building on the idea of chrono-urbanism, this city model provides that the fundamental functions of living (e.g., employment, education, healthcare, entertainment, and commerce) are concentrated within a radius of 15 min on foot or by bicycle, integrating the dimensions of density, proximity, diversity, and digitalisation. Starting from a bibliometric analysis about the research topic, this study proposes an approach to analyse the dynamics between population distribution and services location in Desio, north of Italy. The authors conducted studies on georeferenced population and network analysis to frame the current state and to use it as a basis for planning new actions.