The Redesign Of Cities

Yesterday I wrote about endless possibilities. In thinking about the topic, I pointed to the 2022 Trends Report launched by the Future Today Institute. My post focused on a number of scenarios that represent possibilities. Here is another example of a possibility from the report — new city designs. Post-Industrial Revolution designs focused on cars and roads versus people, but that focus is likely to change. Future communities will be built around nature, not over it. As described by this article, THE LINE is an example of that change.

THE LINE, a 170km belt of hyper-connected future communities, without cars and roads and built around nature, is a direct response to some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity today such as legacy infrastructure, pollution, traffic, and human congestion.

NEOM Company

THE LINE is referenced in the Future Today Institute report in the section on Logistics, Robotics and Transportation. Here is an excerpt from the report.

NEW CITYSCAPE DESIGNS

Saudi Arabia is developing a futuristic new approach to urban planning and city design through its ambitious NEOM project. Its centerpiece is a 106-milelong belt of connected communities which is being called The Line. The linear city will stretch from the Red Sea to the mountains in northwest Saudi Arabia. The goal is to be a city of 1 million people using clean energy where daily needs like schools and shops will be within a 5 minute walk and no journey will be longer than 20 minutes. The Line plans to achieve its transportation design objectives by using a multilevel spine that will include local and high-speed transit, a service layer, and a pedestrian layer. Construction has already begun with earth being moved and creations for tunnels taking shape for a city that hopes to have its first residents in 2024.

DISRUPTIVE IMPACT
With climate change accelerating, more and more is being asked of urban planning with greater considerations for sustainability, flexibility, and future adaptability. These large-scale, interconnected urban planning projects are an approach toward redesigning how we live and how we consume resources. We may have little choice, as sea levels rise and extreme weather events force us indoors or even underground.

Originally published at http://frankdiana.net on June 8, 2022.