The grand ambitions of NEOM, the futuristic city-building initiative launched in 2017 by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, are being dramatically tempered, but other reports claim that the project is on as initially planned. But who's real and who's not on the matter? Will the project retain its original blueprint? Is it going to be drastically reduced? Stick around as we unravel all these and much more… On April 5, 2024, Bloomberg reported that the first phase of The Line, a 106-mile-long ''linear
city'' stretching inland from the Red Sea's coast, will be just 1.5 miles long by its expected completion date of 2030. While the originally planned length of the initial phase is not entirely clear, 1.5 miles represents a far more modest figure than what was envisioned to be completed within the next six years.
According to an anonymous source ''familiar with the matter'' and official documents relating to the project, this reduction in scale comes as the Saudi government is facing dropping cash reserves and stalls on the approval of NEOM's 2024 budget. The NEOM project in its entirety, including The Line and associated resort and city-building efforts in the region, is estimated to
cost $1.5 trillion. The Line was initially pitched as an environmental utopia, embodying the NEOM-coined principle of ''Zero Gravity Urbanism'' Within the city's sky-high mirrored walls, spanning 600 feet wide, spaces for living, working, and recreation would be layered vertically, creating
''never-before-seen efficiencies in city functions;'' according to early promotional material. The experimental desert settlement would also be car-free, connected end-to-end via high- speed rail, and powered by 100 percent renewable energy. Architecture firms associated with the project have included Morphosis, which designed The Line's initial concept, Cook Haffner Architecture Platform, Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, HOK, LAVA, and OMA. Before we jump right in, if you haven't yet subscribed to our channel, kindly do so by clicking the Like button, Subscribe icon below and don't forget to share. Let's get it on!
#engineering #megaprojects #construction #saudiarabia #thelinecity #neomcity
26 сен 2024
