Neom 'The Line' hit with living dilemma

Neom project in Saudi Arabia appears to be getting more and more expensive, but that's not the only problem worrying the planners.

The Wall Street Journal claims that because of the likelihood of natural light penetrating the lower floors of the parallel towers, some prospective inhabitants may find The Line's vertical city concept unappealing.

They will rise to a height of roughly 1,640 feet, which is not too distant from New York City's 1,776-foot World Trade Centre. The city will run solely on renewable energy and feature neither roads nor automobiles, according to Neom's website.

Concerns over The Line's design have already been voiced by several.

After attending Neom's roadshow in China last month, Leonard Chan, the chair of the Hong Kong Innovative Technology Development Association, questioned the city's viability.

"I'll visit for fun, but I won't live there. It's like something out of SimCity," he told AFP.

Plato Yip, the chair of Friends of the Earth in Hong Kong, was among the attendees. He told the source he was concerned about the city feeling alone. He went on to say that although the idea of the mirrored city would be extremely cozy, it "feels like being caged inside."

The project's viability has been questioned even by the architects working on The Line.

Participating in the concept, British architect Peter Cook stated in remarks published by the Architects Journal last year that the projected height was "a bit stupid and unreasonable," calling the city an "amazing absurdity."