# The Line (DD-031)

> The Line was announced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in January 2021 as the centerpiece of NEOM in Saudi Arabia's Tabuk Province. It was pitched as two mirrored skyscrapers 500 m tall and 200 m apart, running 170 km from the Red Sea coast into the mountains. The plan promised 9 million residents, no cars or streets, and an underground train covering the full length in 20 minutes. Reality fell far short. Costs ballooned, and the first phase was cut to about 2.4 km. Construction was suspended in September 2025 with only foundation work done, and in May 2026 Semafor reported the project was on hold until after 2030.

- Department: Locations (also Tech)
- First published: 2026-04-01
- Last updated: 2026-04-01
- Permalink: https://detailenjoyer.com/case/the-line/
- Author: Marcus Easterling (DetailEnjoyer), The Detail Department

## On the timeline

- **Jan. 10, 2021**: Saudi Arabia announces The Line as the centerpiece of NEOM
- **2022**: The design puts a city strip between two mirrored walls 500 meters tall and 170 km long
- **2023**: A leaked draft board presentation puts full completion at $8.8 trillion by 2080
- **September 2025**: Construction is suspended with about 2.4 km of foundation work done
- **March 2026**: NEOM cancels a roughly $1 billion tunneling contract
- **May 2026**: Semafor reports the project is on hold until after 2030
- **2080**: Full-completion date in the leaked 2023 draft, before the project was put on hold (planned)

Full timeline: https://detailenjoyer.com/timeline/?case=the-line

## Quick facts

- **DD-031-F01**: Saudi Arabia's The Line was pitched as a 170-km, 500-m-tall mirrored city for 9 million people, but it was suspended in 2025 after only about 2.4 km of foundations. _(Write-up · Exhibit B (Two mirrored walls))_
- **DD-031-F02**: In The Line's design, two residents would on average be 57 km apart. In a circular city of the same area they'd be just 2.9 km apart. _(Write-up · Exhibit G (Why a line?))_

## Write-up

Saudi Arabia's planned 170-km city stopped after 2.4 km of foundations. The Line, NEOM: pitched for 9 million people, suspended in 2025.

1. **The pitch**: Announced on January 10, 2021, The Line was to be one of NEOM's regions in Tabuk Province: a linear city with no cars, no streets and no carbon emissions.
2. **Two mirrored walls**: The 2022 design put a 200-meter-wide strip of urban 'modules' between two mirrored facades 500 meters tall and 170 km long. They would have run from the Gulf of Aqaba into the Hejaz mountains.
3. **Nine million people**: The plan called for up to 9 million residents. That works out to roughly 260,000 people per square kilometer, about six times the density of Manila.
4. **A 20-minute train**: Early plans described an underground 'spine' railway with 510 km/h trains running end to end in 20 minutes. In March 2026, NEOM canceled a roughly $1 billion tunneling contract tied to that rail.
5. **Costs and shrinking scope**: Reported cost estimates climbed from hundreds of billions into the trillions. A leaked 2023 draft board presentation put full completion at $8.8 trillion by 2080. The first phase was cut to about 2.4 km.
6. **Stopped in the sand**: Construction was suspended in September 2025 with roughly 2.4 km of foundation work done. In May 2026 Semafor reported the project was on hold until after 2030, and NEOM's own page now describes a 'phased, demand-led approach'.
7. **Why a line?**: A 2023 study argued that a circular city of the same area would put far more people within walking distance. In a line, the average distance between two residents is 57 km; in a circle of the same area it's 2.9 km.

## Related case files

- [One Roof Town (DD-008)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/whittier-one-roof/): A real town that lives in a single building, at small scale.
- [The Flock (DD-030)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/the-flock/): Surveillance worries: The Line's data-collection plans drew 'surveillance city' criticism.
- [Nature's Reclamation (DD-066)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/natures-reclamation/): The opposite question: what happens to a city once everyone leaves.
- [Coffin Homes (DD-046)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/coffin-homes/): Another view of urban density.
- [Burj Khalifa (DD-158)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/burj-khalifa/): I linked another Gulf megaproject
- [Mercedes Stadium (DD-617)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/mercedes-stadium/): Another ambitious architecture case
- [2026 (DD-714)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/metropolis-2026/): A real planned city of the future

## Reel vs. record

- **Out of date when posted**: the Reel (Apr 1, 2026) calls it a 'proposed' city 'built to house up to 9 million'. Construction had already been suspended in September 2025 after about 2.4 km of foundation work, and in May 2026 the project was reported on hold until after 2030. [MEP Middle East; BrentDesk/Semafor; Wikipedia]
- **Scaled back**: the 9-million figure is the 2021–22 goal. The first phase was cut to about 2.4 km, and NEOM's wider 2030 population target fell to under 300,000 (100,000 in the May 2026 report). [Wikipedia; MEP Middle East; BrentDesk]
- **Context**: the '20 minutes' end-to-end claim comes from early plans for a 510 km/h underground train that never got past the prototype stage. NEOM canceled a roughly $1 billion tunneling contract in March 2026. [Wikipedia; MEP Middle East]
- **Detail**: 'ultra-narrow' means 200 m wide between two 500-m-tall mirrored facades. [Reuters; Wikipedia]
- **Footage note**: the interior city shots (about 12–20 s) are computer-generated concept renders, not filmed construction. [visual observation; Wikipedia on the renders]

## Video: The Line: Saudi Arabia's Planned 170-km City Stopped After 2.4 km of Foundations

- Duration: 20.7 s · Published: 2026-04-01
- File: https://detailenjoyer.com/assets/videos/DWnHfXzkTgq.mp4

### Transcript

DID YOU KNOW? Saudi Arabia's The Line is a proposed futuristic city within NEOM, in the Tabuk region. It is designed as a 170-km-long, ultra-narrow urban corridor enclosed by mirrored walls, and built to house up to 9 million people. The concept eliminates cars and roads, relying instead on high-speed underground transit that could move residents from one end to the other in about 20 minutes. NOW YOU KNOW!

## Questions & answers

**Q: How long was The Line planned to be?**  
A: It was planned as 170 km from the Red Sea coast into the mountains. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit B (Two mirrored walls) · Saudi Arabia prioritizes sports for NEOM plans as costs balloon, sources say (Reuters, Nov. 2024); The Line, Saudi Arabia (Wikipedia); Saudi Arabia's Giga Projects Are Entering Their Reality Check (WIRED Middle East))_

**Q: How many residents was The Line originally pitched to house?**  
A: The 2021–22 plan called for up to 9 million people. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit C (Nine million people) · The Line, Saudi Arabia (Wikipedia); Saudi Arabia's Giga Projects Are Entering Their Reality Check (WIRED Middle East))_

**Q: How tall were The Line's mirrored walls meant to be?**  
A: Two 500-m-tall mirrored facades would enclose a 200-m-wide city. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit B (Two mirrored walls) · Saudi Arabia prioritizes sports for NEOM plans as costs balloon, sources say (Reuters, Nov. 2024); The Line, Saudi Arabia (Wikipedia); Saudi Arabia's Giga Projects Are Entering Their Reality Check (WIRED Middle East))_

**Q: Roughly how much of The Line had foundation work when construction was suspended in 2025?**  
A: Construction stopped in September 2025 after about 2.4 km of foundation work. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit F (Stopped in the sand) · NEOM Latest Update: Key Developments So Far (MEP Middle East, Mar. 2026); NEOM pauses The Line until after 2030, prioritises Oxagon (BrentDesk, citing Semafor, May 2026); THE LINE: A New Urban Future (NEOM official page); The Line, Saudi Arabia (Wikipedia))_

**Q: What did a 2023 study say would beat a linear city of the same area?**  
A: A circular city would cut the average distance between residents from 57 km to 2.9 km. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit G (Why a line?) · Arguments for building The Circle and not The Line in Saudi Arabia (npj Urban Sustainability, 2023); The Line, Saudi Arabia (Wikipedia))_

## Sources

- [The Line, Saudi Arabia (Wikipedia)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Line,_Saudi_Arabia)
- [Saudi Arabia prioritizes sports for NEOM plans as costs balloon, sources say (Reuters, Nov. 2024)](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-prioritizes-sports-neom-plans-costs-balloon-sources-say-2024-11-13/)
- [NEOM Latest Update: Key Developments So Far (MEP Middle East, Mar. 2026)](https://www.mepmiddleeast.com/news/neom-mar-2026-update-key-developments)
- [NEOM pauses The Line until after 2030, prioritises Oxagon (BrentDesk, citing Semafor, May 2026)](https://brentdesk.com/construction/neom-the-line-paused-until-after-2030-oxagon-priority)
- [Saudi Arabia's Giga Projects Are Entering Their Reality Check (WIRED Middle East)](https://www.wired.me/story/saudi-arabias-giga-projects-are-entering-their-reality-check)
- [THE LINE: A New Urban Future (NEOM official page)](https://www.neom.com/en-us/regions/theline)
- [Arguments for building The Circle and not The Line in Saudi Arabia (npj Urban Sustainability, 2023)](https://doi.org/10.1038/s42949-023-00115-y)

## Cite this case file

Easterling, Marcus. "The Line." The Detail Department (DetailEnjoyer), case file DD-031, last updated Apr 1, 2026. https://detailenjoyer.com/case/the-line/