While the world debates whether to build another strip mall or parking garage, Saudi Arabia is constructing a 170-kilometer-long mirrored wall in the desert. The Line, they’re calling it. Two parallel skyscrapers stretching 105 miles, each one 500 meters tall. That’s taller than the Empire State Building. And the whole thing is covered in mirrors.
The numbers are insane. Nine million people will supposedly live in this thing. It’ll use just 34 square kilometers of land, which sounds efficient until you realize it’s basically a giant reflective barrier cutting through the terrain. They’re already pouring foundation piles into the ground – 120 per week, according to reports. The first phase alone will house 300,000 people in a 2.4-kilometer section.
Nine million people crammed into a giant reflective barrier slicing through the desert.
Here’s what nobody seems to be talking about: birds. Millions of them migrate through this exact region every year. They navigate using the sun, stars, and natural landmarks. Now imagine their confusion when they encounter a 500-meter-tall mirror stretching across the horizon. Glass buildings already kill up to a billion birds annually in the United States alone. This is that problem on steroids.
The structure will span deserts, mountains, and reach all the way to the Gulf of Aqaba. Two mirrored walls with 200 meters between them, connected by walkways. The design includes an open top that supposedly allows for natural airflow, though how that helps the birds is anyone’s guess. Gensler, the firm behind Shanghai Tower, is leading the design. They’re promising vertical farms, five-minute walks to all services, and 100% sustainability. Sure.
Saudi Arabia says this is part of Vision 2030, their plan to diversify away from oil. They’re dumping $2 trillion into futuristic megaprojects like this. The Line is the crown jewel of NEOM, their new economic zone. It’s meant to show the world they’re thinking beyond petroleum.
But let’s be real. You can’t claim environmental sustainability while building a structure that’ll likely become a death trap for countless migrating birds. The mirrored facades might look sleek in architectural renderings, but in reality, they’re creating an invisible wall across a major flyway. The name itself carries multiple meanings, though in this context it represents Saudi Arabia’s attempt to literally draw a line across nature. That’s not progress. That’s just expensive destruction with better marketing.
