Construction is set to commence in the first quarter of this year on what has been described as one of the most complex and challenging infrastructure projects in the world. The project forms part of extensive development work already underway at Neom, the Kingdom’s vision of a home for people who aspire to be part of a new urban model for liveability, a destination for entrepreneurship and businesses, and new ways of looking at sustainability.

Expected to be home to more than 1 million people from all over the world, The Line is said to be a direct response to some of the most pressing challenges facing societies today, including legacy infrastructure, pollution, traffic, and human congestion. Intended to be a linchpin of the Saudi Vision 2030 strategy, which aims to reduce Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil and diversify its economy, the project seeks to create 380,000 jobs and contribute SAR180 billion (US$48 billion) to domestic GDP by the end of this decade. 

Walkability is seen as the hallmark of the project – with all essential daily services and amenities, including schools, medical clinics, leisure facilities, as well as green spaces, accessible within a five-minute walk.

The futuristic city will feature high-speed transit and autonomous mobility solutions, giving residents the opportunity to reclaim time to spend on health and wellbeing, says the Neom Company. An ambition is that no journey will be longer than 20 minutes.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be deployed to create cognitive communities, with the technology continuously learning predictive ways to make life easier, and creating time for both residents and businesses. An estimated 90 per cent of available data will be harnessed to enhance infrastructure capabilities far beyond that typically utilised in existing smart cities, according to Neom.

The new development will be carbon-positive powered by 100-per-cent clean energy, adds the firm, providing pollution-free, healthier and more sustainable environments for residents. And mixed-use communities will be built around nature, instead of over it. The development will also be supported by agricultural areas, supporting locally grown and sustainable food production. And, according to Neom, 95 per cent of its land will be conserved to enhance liveability for residents and environmental protection.

“Throughout history, cities were built to protect their citizens,” said His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman, chair of the Board of Directors of Neom, as he revealed the project. “After the Industrial Revolution, cities prioritised machines, cars and factories over people. In cities that are viewed as the world’s most advanced, people spend years of their lives commuting. By 2050, commute durations will double. By 2050, 1 billion people will have to relocate due to rising CO₂ emissions and sea levels. Ninety per cent of people breathe polluted air.

“Why should we sacrifice nature for the sake of development? Why should seven million people die every year because of pollution? Why should we lose 1 million people every year due to traffic accidents? And why should we accept wasting years of our lives commuting?”

While the claims on the scale of the project are mesmerising – it has been purported that the project may even include an artificial moon, illuminated beaches, flying taxi drones, and extensive facial recognition technology, among other ‘innovations’ – the development is also entangled in controversy.

According to a report in the Guardian last year, part of the Neom site is home to the Huwaitat tribe, whose ancestors can be traced back before the Saudi state was born. It’s thought that the project could result in the eviction of at least 20,000 members of the tribe. Reports have also circulated of abductions and arbitrary arrests carried out by the country’s security forces.

A member of the Neom advisory board told the Guardian that the affected members of the tribe would receive compensation. “Practice in Saudi has been that people have to accept it, and have usually done so because the Government has a tradition of compensating generously,” he is reported to have said.

In June last year, the European-Saudi Organisation for Human Rights joined 11 other NGOs in delivering an open letter, in which it urged consulting firms involved in the Neom project to publicly condemn alleged human rights violations.