Saudi Arabia Megacity Project: THE LINE.

THE LINE is a linear smart megacity under construction in Saudi Arabia in Neom, Tabuk Province, which is designed to have no cars, streets or carbon emissions. The 170-kilometre-long (110 mi) city is part of Saudi Vision 2030 project, which Saudi Arabia claims will create around 460,000 jobs and add an estimated $48 billion to the country’s GDP. The Line is planned to be the first development of a $500 billion project in Neom. The city’s plans anticipate a population of 9 million; 25% of Saudi Arabia’s current population of 35.5 million.

Concept and design

THE LINE is planned to be 170 kilometers (110 mi) long, preserving 95% of the nature within Neom. It will stretch from the Red Sea approximately to the city of Tabuk. It is intended that it will have nine million residents, resulting in an average population density of 260,000 people per square kilometer. By comparison, Manila, the world’s most densely populated city in 2020, had a density of 44,000/km2. The Line’s plan consists of two mirrored buildings with an outdoor space in between, having a total width of 200 meters (660 ft) and a total height of 500 meters (1,600 ft).

The city will be powered by 100% renewable energy, and will have a high-speed rail system that will allow residents to travel from one end of the city to the other in 20 minutes. THE LINE will also feature a variety of smart city technologies, such as self-driving cars, facial recognition software, and artificial intelligence.

Benefits and challenges

THE LINE has the potential to offer a number of benefits, including:

Reduced carbon emissions and pollution
Increased efficiency and productivity
Improved quality of life for residents
Creation of new jobs and economic opportunities

However, there are also a number of challenges that need to be addressed before THE LINE can be completed. These include:

The high cost of construction
The need to develop new technologies
The potential impact on the environment
The social and cultural challenges of creating a new city from scratch

Smart City Quotes

“Smart Technology is making us stupid.” ~Danny Mekić
“A smart city uses digital technology to improve the lives of people. This requires strategic leadership by the administration. Highly promising smart cities not only embrace technology and innovation but also nourish the creativity of their citizens. Without young and talented tech entrepreneurs pushing to transform cities with their ideas, they cannot become truly smart on a large scale.” ~Faruk Tuncer
“A smart city is a city where humans, trees, birds and other animals can grow with all their glories, imperfections, freedom, and creativity. They are not just cities of technology but cities of love, life, beauty, dignity, freedom and equality.” ~Amit Ray
“The modern city is probably the most unlovely and artificial site this planet affords. The ultimate solution is to abandon it. We shall solve the City Problem by leaving the city.” ~Henry Ford
“The Indian smart city is essentially an entrepreneurial city. Like entrepreneurs, cities must gain insight into their uniqueness to be differentiators in the global competition between cities, rather than trying to be similar to each other. Technologising infrastructure provision and monitoring is moot in the Indian context, where equitable access to infrastructure is in itself a huge challenge. I wish “smartening” Indian cities would focus on openly sharing big data and analytics.” ~Madhav Raman
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt