From door to done: everything in 15 minutes

Getting tired of two hours on the subway every day for commuting? Feeling stretched thin between dropping off and picking up children at school and going to work? Or having to travel far to the hospital and civil affairs service offices?

Those problems are easily solved at the Yi'an community in Xiong'an New Area, Hebei province, thanks to a well-planned 15-minute living circle.

"Residents can go downstairs, walk their children to school, and then walk a few hundred meters to work," said Dai Yue, a social worker at the community.

As one of the first communities in the area to accommodate people relocated from Beijing under the national initiative to ease the capital's noncapital functions, Yi'an offers easy access to everyday necessities.

At the Yi'an neighborhood center, a commercial and civil affairs complex within the community, a canteen has more than a dozen food stalls. Residents can also find laundry, hairdressing, repair, and housekeeping services. A supermarket stocks thousands of daily goods, including fresh produce. There is also a children's play area and a public library.