Saudi Arabia, global top crude exporter, on Sunday announced the launch of an eco-city "with zero cars, zero streets and zero carbon emissions" at its futuristic NEOM mega-development. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman unveiled plans for a city, dubbed "THE LINE", in a presentation broadcast on state TV.
The NEOM project estimated to be of $500 billion will be constructed from scratch along the Kingdom’s scenic Red Sea coast.
The $500 billion NEOM project stretched at a length of 170 kilometres is set to be built from scratch along the kingdom's picturesque Red Sea coast, is billed as a development evocative of a sci-fi blockbuster.
The city will preserve 95 per cent of nature within NEOM, with zero cars, zero streets and zero carbon emissions," added the Prince in a televised speech.
A news release described The Line as a walkable "belt of hyper-connected future communities, without cars and roads and built around nature."
The news release said the city will have 1 million residents and create 380,000 jobs and contribute 180 billion riyals ($48 billion) to the kingdom's GDP by 2030, the NEOM statement said.
Prince Mohammed showed computer-generated images of "THE LINE" as well as landscapes of pristine deserts and blue seas.
According to a NEOM statement, the pedestrian city will have all settings like schools, health centres and green spaces, as well as high-speed public transportation, and no journey within The Line will take more than 20 minutes. The city would be developed around "ultra-high-speed transit and autonomous mobility solutions," according to the statement.
Artificial Intelligence will play a key role in the city, the statement said, adding that "it will be powered by 100 per cent clean energy, providing pollution-free, healthier and more sustainable environments for residents". While the city will be a revolution for the humankind, it will have "zero cars, zero streets, zero emissions."
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Construction of the city will begin in the first quarter of this year, with funding from the Public Investment Fund.
The Saudi prince is thinking to diversify its Kingdom’s economy beyond oil.