A Fantasy Sold as Innovation
The Saudi regime is no longer content with selling hollow economic slogans—it now seeks to reinvent the very idea of architecture. The Line, the flagship project of “Vision 2030,” was marketed as a futuristic urban utopia where everything is within a five-minute walk. But Canadian architect Daniel Titchener dismissed this as pure fiction:
“It’s a ridiculous claim… A city stretched over 170 kilometers can never be close or coherent.”
Iron Ribbon of Architectural Nonsense
The Line looks like something out of a sci-fi movie: a 170km-long, 500m-high mirrored wall housing millions of residents. Instead of being a marvel of the future, experts describe it as “the world’s longest urban planning crisis.”
Titchener refuted another key myth—that residents could travel end-to-end in just 20 minutes—calling it “engineering nonsense” and highlighting the immense costs and impracticality of such transport systems.
A Money Pit Disguised as a Vision
Every minute spent on The Line costs billions from public coffers. Bloomberg reports that Saudi Arabia recently sold $5.5 billion in new debt to cover a ballooning deficit, yet the regime insists on pouring money into a publicity stunt. The Line is not a “future investment,” but another gaping wound in the national budget, following the Public Investment Fund’s poor returns—almost zero.
Repression Behind the Glass
Behind the sleek promotional videos lies a grim reality. The indigenous Howeitat tribe was forcibly displaced to make way for this vanity project. Some members were arrested, others killed. The Line isn’t just an unrealistic dream—it’s a crime of forced displacement and erasure of real communities.
Expert Opinions: A Mirage, Not a Miracle
Titchener isn’t alone. Architecture magazines like Wired and Dezeen labelled The Line “unbuildable” and a “dystopian utopia.” British scholar Christopher Davidson remarked:
“The Line is just propaganda—a way for Mohammed bin Salman to portray himself as a visionary. In reality, it’s a financial and political graveyard.”
Fake Studies, Real Problems
In a live interview, Titchener declared:
“There is no genuine urban study supporting The Line. It’s a presentation piece, not a city. The five-minute city idea is deceptive—it will be a logistical nightmare.”
These words cut through the illusion the regime tries to maintain: The Line is neither practical nor humane—it was flawed from the start.
Saudis Left Behind
The bitter irony? The Line was never meant for Saudi citizens. While the people suffer from housing shortages, joblessness, and crushing living costs, billions are spent on digital renderings and PR campaigns. The regime builds for cameras, not communities.
The Line Is Cracking Before It’s Even Built
The Line is not an engineering miracle nor an urban breakthrough. It is a glass monument to repression, debt, and displacement. With every forced eviction, every budget shortfall, and every expert critique, the truth becomes clearer:
The Line is a fantasy crumbling under the weight of its own delusion.
