Although recent reports suggest the plans have been scaled back, the 2.4km still due to be built will be the largest linear city in existence if it is completed. The Spanish architect Arturo Soria is widely credited with designing the first linear city, "La Ciudad Lineal," in 1882 on the outskirts of Madrid. "Linear cities are an extreme form of urban dispersal — community development and social cohesion still need centrality," Gold told BI. A linear city may not have this capability," explained Lovgreen. In my opinion, linear city schemes are best left as design exercises for third-year architectural students," Gold said.

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Persons: —, Arturo Soria, Le Corbusier, Mikhail Okhitovich, Mona Lovgreen, Lovgreen, Adhya, Bland, I'm, John Gold Organizations: Service, Business, Lawrence Technological University, Ciudad, Oxford Brookes University Locations: Saudi Arabia, Spanish, Madrid, Swiss, French, Magnitogorsk, Neom, Paris, Portland, Saudi, NEOM, Tabuk Province